Giants bring former Patriots cornerback Jason McCourty in on a free agency visit

His trip to the open market has been a quiet experience for Jason McCourty so far. The veteran cornerback, who spent the last three seasons with the New England Patriots, drew only limited interest and did not have his first official visit until one month into free agency. That first visit took place in New York today.

As confirmed by the NFL’s transactions wire, McCourty visited the Giants on Friday. The two sides are also “exploring a possible move in the future,” according to a report by NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport.

McCourty entered free agency in March coming off a disappointing season by the standards he set ever since his arrival in New England via trade in 2018. While he became more involved as a leader on the team — he took a vocal stance on social justice matters and was later voted a captain for the first time — his on-field role did change compared to his first two years as a Patriot.

Not only was the 12-year veteran serving as the de facto number four cornerback behind Stephon Gilmore, J.C. Jackson and Jonathan Jones, he also had uncharacteristically inconsistent performances whenever on the field. As a result of this and his age McCourty has had a slow free agency.

“This year in free agency has been different, obviously, with the cap and everything as a result of 2020,” he acknowledged last month.

“I just want to be somewhere where I’m wanted and an opportunity to compete and help the guys around me. As an older player now, I really look forward and love being able to mentor the younger guys and be able to kind of help them grow as well as going out there competing and trying to win games. So, wherever that may be, I’m going to be excited.”

While nothing is set in stone yet, it seems more likely at this point in time that New York will be that destination rather than New England. The Patriots, after all, have not been in any rush to retain the 33-year-old up to this point despite still having plenty of salary cap space available.

This means that there is a chance the McCourty Twins — Jason’s twin brother Devin is playing as a safety for the Patriots — will be split up again after spending the last three years playing alongside each other in the New England secondary. Together, the two helped the team earn two division titles as well as a victory in Super Bowl 53. Also part of that championship team was Joe Judge, who later became the Giants’ head coach.