Stephon Gilmore's tenure with the New England Patriots didn't end well, but it sounds like his former team was close to bringing him back this offseason.
The Patriots and the Dallas Cowboys "showed the most interest" in acquiring Gilmore via trade earlier this year, The Athletic's Jeff Howe reported Sunday. Dallas eventually won out, dealing a compensatory 2023 fifth-round pick to the Indianapolis Colts on March 14 to land the five-time Pro Bowler.
New England's reported pursuit of Gilmore is notable on a few different levels. For starters, the two sides didn't part on good terms: After the Patriots traded Gilmore to the Carolina Panthers in October 2021, the star cornerback called out his former team for how it dealt with his quad injury.
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"I didn’t like how they handled my situation with my injury," Gilmore told reporters at the time. "A lot went on with that that I didn’t agree with, and now that I’m (in Carolina), I’m able to do the things I have to do to get me back ready to where I need to be."
Gilmore was a bit more diplomatic last season when he returned to Foxboro in a Colts uniform, so perhaps he and the Patriots were able to move past his unceremonious exit. But New England's reported interest in Gilmore is also an indicator of how much the team prioritized adding a cornerback this offseason.
While the Patriots entered the offseason with a strong cornerback room led by Jonathan Jones, Jack Jones and Marcus Jones, they still lacked a bigger presence at the position who could match up against taller, more physical wide receivers. So, after the 6-foot-1 Gilmore landed in Dallas, it's no surprise that the Patriots used a first-round draft pick on the 6-foot-1 Christian Gonzalez, who appears on his way to filling the Gilmore role in New England.
There's a chance the Patriots may not have drafted Gonzalez had they traded for Gilmore, so if the Oregon product blossoms into a No. 1 cornerback in New England, we can say Bill Belichick made the right call.
