Devin McCourty, the former Rutgers defensive back who won his second Super Bowl championship with the Patriots on Sunday, said he won't attend a ceremony for the team in Washington with Donald Trump as President. 

"I'm not going to the White House," McCourty wrote in a text message to TIME from the team bus. "Basic reason for me is I don't feel accepted in the White House. With the president having so many strong opinions and prejudices I believe certain people might feel accepted there while others won't."

This line-in-the-sand moment was inevitable from the moment that Trump took office given the divisiveness of his campaign and presidency so far. Still: The Patriots are closely associated with the former Apprentice host, so if one team would show up in D.C. for the grip-and-grin, you would figure it would be this one. 

"I like [Patriots owner] Bob Kraft, I like Coach [Bill] Belichick. Tom Brady is my friend," Trump said on Fox News before the game. "They're taking a lot of heat, but they're also getting a lot of popularity" for their association with him, he told the network.

McCourty, who along with his twin brother Jason has been honored for his charity work, wouldn't be the first athlete to skip the ceremony. In 2013, for example, Baltimore Ravens center Matt Birk skipped the White House visit after Baltimore won that year's Super Bowl because of Barack Obama's support for Planned Parenthood. 

But McCourty's decision could be the start of a trend that would make White House celebrations a thing of the past. "I can't imagine a way I go there," he told Time magazine.

Steve Politi may be reached at spoliti@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @StevePoliti. Find Steve on Facebook.

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