Rutgers cornerback McCourty on Eagles' radar

Asante Samuel and Devin McCourty don't have much in common when it comes to style of play. Samuel is the classic ball-hawking corner, flying around the field with a nose for the football but not one for physical contact.

McCourty represents the opposite end of the cornerback spectrum. The Rutgers product is a bruising tackler, more likely to force a fumble than jump a route.

But McCourty said he'd revel in the opportunity to play with and learn from the Eagles' perennial Pro Bowler. It's a prospect that could become a reality after an off-season in which the highly touted McCourty emerged on the Eagles' radar.

"Playing in Philadelphia wouldn't be bad at all," said McCourty, who enters the 2010 draft after five years at Rutgers. "I would like that. But the biggest thing that everyone keeps reminding me of is that you really can't control anything that happens on draft day."

The things McCourty can control are the things that may have landed him on the Eagles' draft board in the first place.

An iron man at Rutgers, McCourty made just as much of a name for himself on special teams as he did in the secondary. He returned kickoffs and punts. He had seven career blocked kicks - six blocked punts and one blocked field goal - and was on the field for 111 plays against Connecticut last season.

Perhaps even more impressive is that for all of his achievements at Rutgers, McCourty is widely considered the third-best cornerback in the draft because of the work he put in during the four months since playing his final game as a Scarlet Knight.

"It's a good feeling when you can go through this process and not have any regrets over how you worked or prepared," said McCourty, who got ready for the NFL combine with other draft-eligible corners such as Akwasi Owusu-Ansah of Indiana (Pa.) and Prince Miller of Georgia. "It's nice when you go out and perform well and just leave it up to everyone else to make the decision."

McCourty's combine results, where his time in the 40-yard dash (4.48 seconds) was faster than that of top-ranked cornerback Joe Haden (4.57), sent his draft stock soaring. McCourty is thought of as a late-first-round pick and will likely be the highest-rated cornerback on the board when the Eagles make their first-round selection with the 24th pick.

The Eagles' newly hired defensive backs coach, Dick Jauron, spoke with McCourty at the combine and shared more positive words after watching McCourty again at Rutgers' Pro Day on March 10.

"It seemed like he was pretty impressed," McCourty said.

Whether it's with the Eagles or one of the other teams expressing interest in him - they include the Ravens and the Browns - McCourty is just eager to take the field for an NFL team and follow in the footsteps of his identical twin, Jason.

Jason McCourty was a sixth-round draft pick by the Titans last year. The brothers talk every day, and watching Jason's success last season is giving Devin confidence in himself.

"I think the reason I might be a higher draft pick than him is partly because of him," Devin said of his brother, who stood out on special teams and saw increasing playing time at corner. Jason McCourty recorded 29 tackles and forced a fumble in his rookie year. "What he was able to do this year to help the team, I think, has really been a part of the reason why my stock has gone up even more."

Devin McCourty, who redshirted his first year at Rutgers, also points to his extra year in college as making him more NFL-ready than Jason was at this time last year. Like Jason, Devin expects to step in and be able to make an impact on any team that drafts him.

"I feel like I know what I bring to the table as far as being a complete player, playing corner and playing on special teams," McCourty said. "But I would be lying if I said that I've studied tapes and compared my game to other corners" in the draft.

Instead, as he has through his entire career, McCourty is worried only about what he can control. And until the draft, that means sitting back, trying to relax, and waiting to hear his name called by an NFL team.

"I'm definitely getting a little more excited as the draft gets closer," he said. "The process of getting drafted is coming to an end. But then starts a whole new process of being on a team and seeing what you can do to help that team win."