Retirement 'Not an Option' for Patriots Safety, Captain Devin McCourty

Of the many free agents that the New England Patriots will have to decide whether to re-sign or let walk this offseason is safety and captain, Devin McCourty. At 32-years-old, McCourty is coming off one of the best seasons of his career. While the end is certainly near for the veteran, who has three Super Bowl rings to hang his hat on, the end will apparently not be coming in 2020.

During a conversation with ESPN's Mike Reiss, McCourty's agent, Andy Simms of Young Money APAA Sports, said that retirement is "not an option" for McCourty, who is slated to be a free agent this offseason.

"He wants to play. Retirement is not an option," Simms said.

The question that remains now that retirement is off the table: where will McCourty play next season? The option to play elsewhere will certainly be there when considering how talented a player he is. But it's also very possible that he takes a hometown discount to stay in New England and compete for a championship next season.

With a projected $28 million of cap space to work with next season, it will be impossible for New England to re-sign every valuable asset they have, such as Tom Brady, Joe Thuney, McCourty, Kyle Van Noy, Matthew Slater, and Jamie Collins, all of whom will be free agents this offseason. However, if McCourty opts to take a lesser deal to play with the team that drafted him back in 2010, it will help New England accomplish their goal of gaining as much talent as possible under their limited salary cap space in 2020. But that is not a guarantee, and Brady's looming decision could play a part in what McCourty ultimately decides to do.