Stephon Gilmore won’t hit the open market, after all.
Just hours after both Gilmore and the New England Patriots acknowledged the 2019 NFL Defensive Player of the Year and team were parting ways, the Carolina Panthers announced that they have traded a 2023 sixth-round draft pick for the cornerback.
Gilmore, 31, has been on the physically unable to perform list after recovering from a torn quad sustained last season that required surgery. Gilmore had been seeking a restructured contract
Gilmore is originally from Rock Hill, South Carolina, where the Panthers are building their future team headquarters. He was also selected as a first-team All-Pro in 2018 and 2019 and helped the Patriots secure a title in Super Bowl 53, in which New England topped the Rams, 13-3.
Carolina lost starting cornerback Jaycee Horn, the team’s first-round draft pick from the 2021 NFL draft, to a broken bones in his foot in a Week 3 victory against the Houston Texans. The team traded for former Jacksonville Jaguars first-round pick CJ Henderson to fill the void at cornerback.
