With some solid depth now in the Miami Dolphins’ secondary, veteran defensive back Jason McCourty is taking a team-first approach by offering to fill in wherever he’s needed.
McCourty was signed as a free agent by the Dolphins during the offseason after playing with the New England Patriots the past three seasons.
That Patriots connection brought him into contact with Dolphins head coach Brian Flores and where he said he developed some versatility when it came to positioning.
“I think for me, over the last three years in New England, I got a chance to line up at every position in the secondary – from nickel, to corner, to free safety, to sometimes strong safety, to sometimes on third-down packages, kind of a dime linebacker spot,” McCourty said. “I think for me, more important than comfort with any specific position, it’s just building comfort in the defense. Obviously, I played for ‘Flo’ (Brian Flores) as a coordinator in 2018 in New England; but the Miami defense isn’t exactly the New England defense,” said McCourty.
“So for me, rather than focusing on becoming a free safety or cornerback or nickel, it’s how can I learn the entire defense to understand, ‘Ok, when the free safety is moving this way, he’s doing that because the corner is now thinking this way and the nickel is going to be moving in that direction.’ I think the more I can understand the totality of the defense and why the moving parts are moving the way they are, the more I’ll be able to learn for myself and be able to play better, and the more I’ll be able to help the guys around me as I understand the defense as a whole.”
Flores and the Dolphins are hoping that Jevon Holland, selected in the second round out of the University of Oregon, is able to make an immediate impact.
If Holland does make his presence felt early, it could bode well for a defense that’s been upgraded over the past two years and could help vault the Dolphins into the postseason.
