In terms of games played, the New England Patriots are not the No. 1 team on Stephon Gilmore’s career list. Between the regular season and playoffs, he appeared in 67 contests for the organization — one fewer than he did for the Buffalo Bills.
And yet, when it came to choosing a team to retire with, there was no question which one it would be.
“I had great early years in my career, but I think once I came to New England, I really grew into myself, mentally, physically,” Gilmore explained during a ceremony
at Gillette Stadium on Friday.
“I got so much better as a player. I had great coaches, I was around a lot of great veteran players that really helped me elevate my game. I had my best years here and I learned a lot here. I think I wouldn’t be the person I am today if I didn’t come to this this franchise. So, that’s why I chose New England.”
Originally a first-round draft pick by the Bills in 2012, Gilmore joined the Patriots as a free agent in 2017. Over the next four seasons, he developed into one of the best cornerbacks in the game and was twice named first-team All-Pro as well as the NFL’s Defensive Player of the Year in 2019 — one of only seven cornerbacks to win the award since its inception in 1971.
Gilmore, however, does not value the individual accolades quite like what he considers the favorite memory of his Patriots tenure.
“I think just winning the Super Bowl,” he explained. “My first five years, I didn’t go to the playoffs. Coming here, I go to the Super Bowl the first year and we lose it to Philly. I made that big play in the AFC championship but we still lose the Super Bowl, and then winning — it’s hard. You don’t know if you’re going to go back to the Super Bowl. We were able to go back. I was able to make that play in the Super Bowl to seal the game. That that was a good feeling.”
Gilmore’s interception of Jared Goff with less than five minutes to go in Super Bowl LIII helped the Patriots win their sixth Lombardi Trophy and the cornerback to crown himself a champion for the first time. But while that pick would be the shoo-in selection for a lot of players as the best of their careers, the 36-year-old is not so certain.
For Gilmore, his pass breakup against the Jacksonville Jaguars in the previous season’s AFC Championship Game ranks right up there with the Super Bowl INT.
“I think the AFC Championship play was a harder play to make,” he said. “If I don’t make that play we don’t get to the Super Bowl. But I think for me, winning the Super Bowl was a great feeling and I was able to seal it during that game. It’s hard to pick between those two plays.”
In Gilmore’s opinion, his most complete game was neither the Super Bowl nor that conference championship. Instead, he pointed to a 2019 game against the Dallas Cowboys that saw him keep wideout Amari Cooper without a catch while also registering an interception.
It was one of 13 picks he registered in a Patriots uniform, and one of 34 overall in a career that also included stops in Buffalo, Carolina, Indianapolis, Dallas and Minnesota. The final symbolic stop, however, was again Foxborough, Massachusetts.
