New England Patriots dispute Times tweet about WH crowd size

April 20 (UPI) -- Exactly half of the New England Patriots' Super Bowl-winning team did not attend its celebration at the White House, causing photographers to take notice of a diminished presence.

The New York Times tweeted out a photo Wednesday comparing the differing crowd sizes from the team's trip in 2015 with President Barack Obama and its Wednesday meeting with President Donald Trump. The Times' photos showed the 2015 team filling up the White House staircases while no players were standing on the steps in its photo of Wednesday's event.

The Patriots responded four hours later to the Times' post, tweeting: "These photos lack context. Facts: In 2015, over 40 football staff were on the stairs. In 2017, they were seated on the South Lawn."

In total, 34 players were present for the meeting with President Trump. The Times reported that about 50 players attended the event in 2015.

Tom Brady, LeGarrette Blount, Brandon Bolden, Dion Lewis, James White, Danny Amendola, Michael Floyd, Martellus Bennett, Shaq Mason, LaAdrian Waddle, Alan Branch, Malcom Brown, Chris Long, Vincent Valentine, Dont'a Hightower, Malcolm Butler, Patrick Chung, Duron Harmon, Cyrus Jones, Devin McCourty, Logan Ryan, Ryan Allen, Jonathan Freeny, Tre' Jackson, Greg Scruggs, Chris Barker, Trevor Bates, Jamil Douglas, Chase Farris, Tyler Gaffney, Woodrow Hamilton, Devin Lucien, and DeAndrew White all skipped out on the 2017 event.

McCourty and Long explained why they were skipping the event Friday in a YouTube video for Green Stripe News.

"Now obviously you want to switch the narrative, so for me it was simple," McCourty said in the video. "I don't believe in excluding other people."

"You know, right away I knew I wasn't going because it was something I thought about before we even won the game," McCourty said.

"When my son grows up and I believe the legacy of our president is gonna be what it is, I don't want him to say 'Hey, dad, why did you go when you knew the right thing was to not go," Long said in the YouTube video.

McCourty also told Time in February that he didn't "feel accepted" at the nation's capital.

"I'm not going to the White House," McCourty wrote to the magazine. "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."

The Patriots also tweeted its official attendance numbers from Wednesday's event along with its visit in 2005.

"Comparable photos: The last time the #Patriots won two Super Bowls in three years, 36 players visited the White House. Today, we had 34," the tweet said.

New England has now visited the White House five times after winning the Lombardy Trophy. The franchise has nine Super Bowl appearances.