NFL Players Are Not Happy With The League Moving Up The Opt-Out Deadline As Pats DB Devin McCourty Calls It BS

Boston.com – Patriots safety Devin McCourty is not happy about the NFL’s intention to move up the opt-out deadline for the upcoming season.

“I think it’s an absolute joke the NFL is changing the opt-out period, mainly because they don’t want to continue to see guys opt out,” McCourty said Sunday afternoon via a WebEx conference. “I’m sure they’re shocked about how many guys have opted out.”

Eight Patriots, including linebacker Dont’a Hightower and safety Patrick Chung, have already elected to skip the 2020 season. The deadline to opt out, according to ESPN, was originally scheduled to be one week after the signing of a revision to the CBA. Instead, players may now have only until Tuesday or Wednesday.

“I think it’s terrible,” McCourty said. “I think it’s B.S. that the league has changed that date.”

McCourty did not take questions during his media availability Sunday, instead offering a five-minute statement. He did not confirm whether he plans on playing this season. McCourty noted he has spoken to each of his teammates that has opted out and shared his full support.

Devin McCourty is clearly a locker room leader for the Patriots, and based on the number of opt-outs we’ve seen thus far, he’s likely speaking for a big chunk of the NFL population. And this comes from a player in McCourty who may still play. You can only imagine how angry the guys are who have immune conditions or families who could be affected and are locked in to not play. The NFL not only will cause those guys additional stress but could also cause players who haven’t reached a decision to make the wrong one for them and their families. It’s not the best look.

It’s almost a running joke at this point with the NFL that when they try their hardest to “get something right,” they inevitably get it wrong. From the days of the two-game suspension for Ray Rice that was then changed in panic to the handling of Colin Kaepernick and kneeling protests to the faux concern for social justice and these COVID health causes right now, that’s the Roger Goodell regime in a nutshell. You can give him 99 choices that will make everyone happy and be perfectly received, and he’ll find the way to take the one that turns off players, fans, or some combination of both.

I want the NFL back as badly as anyone and have long said that was the one thing I hoped for, that society and its lack of concern for thee COVID virus would not ruin the NFL starting on time. But somehow I forgot about the NFL’s ability to ruin it all themselves. And as the MLB season has shown us so far, these mistakes can add up very quickly. Especially in a league with dozens of players colliding and virus spewing all over each other, the hopes of a nation of football fans rely on this:

May the Football Gods have mercy on all of our souls.

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