Reports: Pats more likely to tag Gostowski than McCourty

Mike Reiss/ESPN

According to NESN, if the Pats use the franchise tag, it will likely be on kicker Stephen Gostowski rather than Devin McCourty today's 4pm deadline. The franchise tag for a kicker is worth $4.5 million, as opposed to $9.5 million for safeties.

Gostowski has been lights out for the Pats, missing only 2 field goals all season (none in the postseason) and he was perfect on extra points all season, including the playoffs. It's hard to imagine the Patriots wanting to let that kind of efficiency go.

So what does this mean for Devin McCourty? Well, hopefully it means talks on an extension to keep him in New England are proceeding well and he'll be coming back on a longer deal. I could be wrong, but I hope that's the case. We'll keep you posted as we know more.