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Stephon Gilmore

Packers Explored Stephon Gilmore Trade

October 6th, 2021 at 6:37pm CST by Sam Robinson

When it became known the Patriots were moving on from Stephon Gilmore, reports linked the All-Pro cornerback to the Packers. However, the Panthers instead made the move to land him.

The Packers did try to acquire Gilmore, according to ESPN.com’s Rob Demovsky, who notes the team explored ways to add his contract. Gilmore’s expiring deal has $5.8MM remaining this season; the Packers have just more than $7MM in cap space.

While the team could have afforded Gilmore, it would have been up against the cap. The Packers made contact with the Patriots once their desire to move on became known, per Demovsky, who adds the 10th-year corner wanted a monster extension to go with any trade. Considering how little the Patriots received for Gilmore without the extension requirement, this demand was quickly dropped. Gilmore, per SI.com’s Albert Breer, wanted to play for the Packers (video link via 98.5 The Sports Hub). But he ended up in Carolina, which has now acquired Gilmore and 2020 first-round corner C.J. Henderson.

Green Bay did make a move at corner Wednesday, signing Rasul Douglas off Arizona’s practice squad. The Packers have Jaire Alexander expected to miss at least Week 5, and it sounds like a longer absence is in play. Matt LaFleur said the team will try to avoid its top corner undergoing surgery “at all costs,” via Tom Silverstein of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (on Twitter), but it remains to be seen when Alexander will be ready to return. Alexander suffered a shoulder injury late in the Packers’ Week 4 win over the Steelers. Shoulder surgery likely would end Alexander’s season and deal a huge blow to Green Bay’s Super Bowl aspirations.

With Alexander down and Gilmore now on the Panthers’ PUP list, Green Bay does have some depth on which to lean. The Pack drafted Eric Stokes in Round 1 and re-signed Kevin King. The team traded Josh Jackson straight up for Isaac Yiadom this summer and drafted Shemar Jean-Charles in the fifth round. Fourth-year defender Chandon Sullivan, however, saw his workload boosted after Alexander’s injury.

Gilmore Extension Not Yet In Panthers’ Plans

October 6th, 2021 at 4:13pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Panthers made a second major addition to their cornerback group Wednesday, acquiring former Defensive Player of the Year Stephon Gilmore from the Patriots. This followed Carolina’s trade for C.J. Henderson.

Carolina now takes on Gilmore’s contract. While Gilmore is attached to the $13MM-per-year deal he signed in 2017, he is due less than $7MM in 2021 base salary going forward. Gilmore’s contract expires after this season, but Panthers GM Scott Fitterer said the team will not immediately extend him post-trade (Twitter link via ESPN.com’s David Newton).

Gilmore expressed disappointment regarding his contract for years in New England, when he outplayed the deal he signed after coming over from Buffalo. He skipped the Patriots’ offseason program this year. Since his two All-Pro nods, however, Gilmore missed five games last year and is guaranteed to miss the first six this season due to the quadriceps injury he sustained late in 2020.

Fitterer does expect Gilmore to be ready to come off the PUP list when first eligible in Week 7, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets. Carolina’s new GM would seem to have extensive information on Gilmore, as they live next to each other in Charlotte. Gilmore is a South Carolina native who starred with the Gamecocks in college.

Gilmore turned 31 last month, and a potential re-up with the Panthers will likely hinge on his 2021 performance. While a high-cost short-term deal might be in the cards after a strong season, Gilmore’s window to land Jalen Ramsey-level money is likely closed. The corner’s camp acknowledged as much earlier this year, though Gilmore’s team did float Darius Slay‘s three-year, $50MM Eagles deal as a comp during his discussions with the Pats.

The Panthers have reshaped their cornerback room via the trade market, but they are not giving up on Jaycee Horn coming back this season. Carolina’s first-round pick broke three broken bones in his foot during the team’s Week 3 win and landed on IR. He was said to be conversing with his camp about the best course of action — be it a late-season return or preparing for the 2022 season. The Panthers remain hopeful the former scenario can come to pass, Fitterer said (via Newton, on Twitter). Matt Rhule said late last month Horn was set to undergo surgery. A two- to three-month recovery timetable is in the cards with that operation.

Patriots Trade Stephon Gilmore To Panthers

October 6th, 2021 at 12:30pm CST by Zachary Links

The Patriots have traded cornerback Stephon Gilmore to the Panthers. In exchange, the Panthers will send a 2023 sixth-rounder to New England. 

Gilmore was set to be released by the Patriots, but Bill Belichick & Co. managed to find a trade instead. The 31-year-old will now help replace first-round pick Jaycee Horn, who is out with a broken foot. Gilmore, the 2019 Associated Press NFL Defensive Player of the Year, now headlines a Panthers CB group with Donte Jackson, former top-10 pick C.J. Henderson, A.J. Bouye, and Rashaan Melvin.

Gilmore will be eligible to play after Week 6, pending the status of his quad injury. That means he could debut as soon as Week 7, when the Panthers face the Giants in New Jersey.

Gilmore spent his first five years with the Bills before moving on to the Patriots in 2017. He went on to win a ring with the Pats in 2018 and took his game to a whole new level in ’19, en route to DPOY honors. After notching a career-high six interceptions, Gilmore wanted a new contract to reflect his performance and the dramatic uptick in the CB market.

The Pats — in classic Belichick fashion — resisted. They’ll move forward with J.C. Jackson and Jalen Mills as their top two CBs with Jonathan Jones in the slot. They also have 2019 second-rounder Joejuan Williams in the mix, plus the recently-acquired Shaun Wade.

Now, Gilmore has a prime opportunity to shine with the 3-1 Panthers. Barring an extension, he’ll play out the remainder of his five-year, $65MM contract before testing free agency in the spring.

Patriots Still Shopping Stephon Gilmore?

October 6th, 2021 at 11:13am CST by Zachary Links

The Patriots are set to release Stephon Gilmore, but the move has yet to hit the league’s official transactions wire. Meanwhile, sources say the Patriots have leaked the news in a last-ditch effort to trade the cornerback (Twitter link via Albert Breer of The MMQB).

[RELATED: Patriots To Cut Stephon Gilmore]

“I am grateful to Stephon Gilmore for his significant contributions to the team,” head coach Bill Belichick said in a team-issued statement. “It was a privilege and pleasure to coach Steph, I appreciate him for the true professional and class act that he is and wish him all the best in the future. Following discussions over a long period of time, we mutually agreed to part ways today.”

Belichick’s statement indicates that it’s a done deal. However, as of this writing, Gilmore has not been formally released.

From a football-only perspective, tons of teams would love to add Gilmore. However, no one was willing to meet the Patriots’ asking price, given Gilmore’s desire for a new contract. From here, interested clubs might be inclined to wait until 4pm ET/3pm CT. Then again, they could also circumvent the bidding process by talking to Gilmore’s camp and sending some future draft compensation to New England.

Patriots To Cut Stephon Gilmore

October 6th, 2021 at 8:18am CST by Zachary Links

The Patriots are releasing cornerback Stephon Gilmore. The cornerback broke the news himself on social media, thanking the team for their time together. 

“It is with mixed emotions that I announce my goodbye to this great fan base. We enjoyed so much success together and you have been an incredible inspiration for my individual achievements. Thank you for supporting this Rock Hill kid and allowing him to achieve his NFL dreams,” Gilmore wrote (Twitter link). “To Mr. Kraft, the coaches, and the organization thank you for providing me with this platform and allowing me to be part of greatness. Most of all I want to thank my teammates who lined up next to me every Sunday with one goal in mind.”

Gilmore and the Patriots weren’t able to make progress in contract talks, but he was still expected to stick with the club for the rest of the season. To date, he’s been on the physically unable to perform list with a quadriceps injury. Per the league’s PUP rules, he could have been activated as soon as Week 7.

Gilmore has been with the Patriots since 2017 after spending his first five years with the Buffalo Bills. He was part of the Patriots’ Super Bowl championship team in 2018 and won the 2019 Defensive Player of the Year award in which he had a career-high six interceptions and two touchdowns that year.

At the time of signing, Gilmore was plenty happy with his five-year, $65MM contract. Since then, he’s performed as one of the league’s best cover men as the market advanced significantly. In terms of average annual value ($13MM), the deal had the 2019 Defensive Player of the Year outside of the top 10 for CBs.

Patriots Still Open To Trading Stephon Gilmore?

September 3rd, 2021 at 4:51pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Patriots have yet to resolve Stephon Gilmore‘s contract issue, and they are now set to be without the All-Pro cornerback for at least six games. Gilmore will reside on New England’s reserve/PUP list to start the season.

While it would stand to reason the Pats will be eager to have Gilmore back in their starting lineup when he recovers from his troublesome quadriceps injury, there may not be a future here beyond 2021. On that note, the team is not believed to have ruled out a Gilmore trade, Dan Graziano of ESPN.com notes.

This topic surfaced in March but did not gain much steam. After a report indicated the Pats were open to trading Gilmore, news emerged shortly after stating that the team was not actively shopping the 10th-year corner. Gilmore trade rumors have come up on a few occasions over the past year and change. The Pats discussed Gilmore with other teams during the 2020 draft and set a high price for the accomplished defender at last year’s trade deadline. Nothing came to pass, and Gilmore remains attached to his 2017 contract. He is set to make just $7MM in base salary this season, the final year of the deal.

Optimism existed on a revised Gilmore deal last month, Graziano adds, but nothing has changed contractually. The 30-year-old corner did not attend minicamp or practice during training camp. Still, a Pats team with more realistic playoff aspirations this year would stand to benefit from a healthy Gilmore, who would lead their cornerback corps. It would seemingly take a strong offer for the Pats to give up the prospect of Gilmore leading a group that houses J.C. Jackson, Jonathan Jones and Jalen Mills.

Of course, the Pats have an extensive history of parting with veteran contributors just before Week 1 or early in the season. The team made Lawyer Milloy a surprise cut in September 2003, traded Richard Seymour to the Raiders in September 2009, traded Randy Moss to the Vikings in October 2010 and dealt Logan Mankins to the Buccaneers in September 2014.

A Gilmore trade could bring back an attractive haul for the Pats, even if a first-round pick is unrealistic — especially with Gilmore not being available until Week 7 at the earliest. A team that acquires the former Defensive Player of the Year would do so likely knowing a big-ticket extension will need to follow, unless said team is fine with a rental scenario. Gilmore’s camp was not expecting Jalen Ramsey-level money from the Pats, but the sides having not agreed to anything nearly two months after Gilmore went public about his dissatisfaction may extend this uncertain situation into the regular season.

Patriots Reduce Roster To 53

August 31st, 2021 at 7:21pm CST by Ben Levine

The Patriots made headlines earlier today when they cut quarterback Cam Newton, a move that made rookie Mac Jones the starter. The team has since reduced their roster to 53 players, and we’ve detailed each of the moves (including those previously reported) below:

Released

Waived

Placed on Reserve/PUP list

Placed on Reserve/NFI list

Placed on Injured Reserve

The Patriots veterans are most notable, but the organization also waived a pair of 2021 draft picks. Sherman was a sixth-round pick out of Colorado who appeared in 30 games during his collegiate career. Nixon was a seventh-round pick; the wideout split his collegiate career between Ole Miss and Central Florida, earning All-AAC honors in 2019.

Patriots To Move Stephon Gilmore To Reserve/PUP List

August 31st, 2021 at 10:03am CST by Sam Robinson

Stephon Gilmore will not begin his season until at least October. The Patriots are moving the All-Pro cornerback to the reserve/PUP list, according to ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter (on Twitter).

Although Gilmore has been embroiled in a contract impasse with the Pats, he also is on the mend from a quadriceps injury. This roster move will sideline the former Defensive Player of the Year for the first six weeks of the season. Gilmore cannot return to practice until these six weeks are up, either.

A partially torn quad ended Gilmore’s 2020 season after 11 games. With this injury occurring in December of last year, it stands as concerning it will affect Gilmore’s 2021 campaign. The Patriots made numerous offseason additions to bolster their offense and defense, but Gilmore certainly serves as a key component to the team returning the playoffs. The team does have young standouts J.C. Jackson and Jonathan Jones and moved free agent signing Jalen Mills back to corner. New England also acquired rookie Shaun Wade from Baltimore. But Gilmore’s absence will make their jobs more difficult.

This has been a multi-issue offseason for the standout defender. The Patriots still have Gilmore attached to his 2017 deal — a five-year, $65MM contract that has become team-friendly — and the 10th-year veteran has pushed back against playing the 2021 season on it. The sides spent months at odds on this issue, though it was not believed to be a contentious matter. Gilmore, 31 in September, reported to the team for training camp. But has yet to practice and will not end up doing so for several more weeks.

CB Stephon Gilmore Reports To Patriots

July 22nd, 2021 at 5:22pm CST by Ben Levine

Stephon Gilmore continues to push for a new contract, but the standoff won’t keep him away from Foxborough. Jeff Howe of The Athletic reports (via Twitter) that the former Defensive Player of the Year reported to Gillette Stadium today. However, the veteran cornerback will temporarily sit on the PUP list.

We heard recently that the Patriots hadn’t made any progress on an extension with Gilmore. The cornerback previously hinted that he’d be satisfied with a simply bump in pay for the 2020 campaign, and some pundits believe the organization could find a compromise by offering Gilmore an incentive-based increase (similar to what they previously did with the likes of Tom Brady and Rob Gronkowski). Gilmore is presumably waiting for an offer that contains more guaranteed money, explaining why he skipped the team’s entire offseason program, including mandatory minicamp.

Gilmore, 31 in September, is set to make just $7MM in base salary this season after a chunk of his money was advanced in 2020. In terms of average annual value ($13MM), the 2019 Defensive Player of the Year ranks as just the 13th highest-paid cornerback in the NFL. At the time of signing, his five-year, $65MM deal was plenty. Since then, the former Bills first-round pick has performed as one of the game’s premier cover men.

There’s mutual interest in a longer arrangement, since Gilmore was a first-team All-Pro in 2018 and ’19.However, questions persist about last year’s torn quad. Either way, barring an unexpected development, it sounds like the defensive back will at least spend the 2021 season with New England.

Gilmore was one of a handful of Patriots players to land on PUP today. He’ll be joined by defensive tackle Byron Cowart, linebacker Terez Hall, tight end Dalton Keene, linebacker Brandon King, wideout Devin Smith, quarterback Jarrett Stidham, and linebacker Chase Winovich.

No Progress For Patriots, Stephon Gilmore

July 19th, 2021 at 9:02am CST by Zachary Links

The Patriots and cornerback Stephon Gilmore haven’t made any recent progress on their extension talks, according to Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated. Gilmore told reporters recently that he’s not happy with his current contract, but also said that he wouldn’t demand a trade.

“I just want what I’m worth, however that plays out,” Gilmore said earlier this month. “Every player should be paid what they’re worth. That’s just how it is. Hopefully we can find some common ground and get it situated. I just know what I bring to the table and my style of play.”

Gilmore, 31 in September, is set to make just $7MM in base salary this season after a chunk of his money was advanced in 2020. In terms of average annual value ($13MM), the 2019 Defensive Player of the Year ranks as just the 13th highest-paid cornerback in the NFL. At the time of signing, his five-year, $65MM deal was plenty. Since then, the former Bills first-round pick has performed as one of the game’s premier cover men.

There’s mutual interest in a longer arrangement, since Gilmore was a first-team All-Pro in 2018 and ’19.However, questions persist about last year’s torn quad. Some believe that they can smooth things out with incentives for the current year, like they’ve done in the past for Rob Gronkowski and Tom Brady. But, Breer hears that there hasn’t been much progress on that front either.

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