Stephon Gilmore didn’t get to pick his team, but he couldn’t have asked for a better outcome. Hours after being traded from the Patriots, the cornerback told the team website that playing for the Panthers is a “dream come true.” 
[RELATED: Patriots Trade Stephon Gilmore To Panthers]
“I always wanted to, growing up as a kid,” Gilmore said. “Some things you can’t control. But I always thought about it as a kid, and you always dreamed about it. But it happened, and I’m happy it happened.”
Gilmore spent years pushing the Patriots for a new contract. Ultimately, in vintage Pats fashion, they chose to move on instead. For his part, Gilmore has agreed to table talks until after the season. After that, it sounds like he’d be pretty open to staying in Carolina.
“I think so,” said Gilmore when asked if he’d have signed with the Panthers if he was released this week. “This is a place I always wanted to play. Looking at the team and what they’ve got, the potential. Obviously, you have to put in a lot of hard work to get to where you want to go. For sure, I think it was a great opportunity I would come here.”
Ideally, the Panthers would like to retain both Gilmore and 25-year-old corner Donte Jackson this spring. In the meantime, Gilmore is strictly focused on returning to the field. Still on the PUP list with a quad injury, Gilmore hopes to debut sometime in the next few weeks.
“ Dream Come True..” love how all athletes up for a new contract either “ want to play here my entire career” or “ it is a dream come true.”
you must be fun at parties
I would think it’s a dream come true because Gilmore is a South Carolina native, but hey be unreasonably cynical
Fyi, he played college ball in the Carolinas, so his statement makes a lot of sense.
Isnt this the same guy who by all accounts wanted to go to Green Bay?
How many players wouldn’t want to play with a top 5 qb.
I am not sure I would want to play with Rogers. Always been rumored to have personality issues, is almost 40, and probably playing his last games for the team this year
I hear you but he earned last season’s MVP. I think that says a whole lot!
Did he get a ring? Rogers getting the mvp doesn’t get Gilmore anything. Rogers has always been great and the packers have always been a playoff caliber team but rarely do we say they are an elite team. Whether that on Rogers or the packers? Chances are it’s shared blame on both.
Green Bay has been in four of the last seven NFC Championship games.
That’s pretty elite.
Not trying to be confrontational buuuuut 4 out of 7 years and how many rings? It’s all about the chips, at the end of the day
The ring argument is always a poor argument. The ring argument applies to the team a player goes to. When evaluating a PLAYER, it is absolutely relevant to consider MVP and individual awards/accomplishments.
With that said, I’m not sure how much an MVP quarterback influences a defensive player’s decision. A wideout or runner, maybe. He may want to go to a contender, but that’s more of a team evaluation anyway. But no, players don’t say “MVPs don’t count unless he wins a championship.” They don’t just ignore it. That’s silly.