Just about the same time that the stunning news of Stephon Gilmore’s being released by the Patriots was breaking, the former NFL Defensive Player of the Year took to social media Wednesday morning to say goodbye to New England.
Addressing “Pats Nation,” via both Twitter and Instagram, Gilmore said it was with “mixed emotions” that he was saying goodbye.
Gilmore has been on PUP all season with a quad injury, but has also been embroiled in mild contract dispute with the Patriots dating back to last season. The veteran cornerback had been in the final season of the five-year, $65 million contract he signed to join New England as a free agent from the Bills back in 2017. But his salary of just $7 million this fall is well below market value at this point for a No. 1 cornerback of his stature/resume.
The 31-year-old Gilmore also thanked Patriots owner Robert Kraft, his coaches and the New England organization “for providing me with this platform and allowing me to be part of greatness.”
He thanked his teammates “most of all” for lining up with him each Sunday “with one goal in mind.”
Gilmore helped the Patriots win a Super Bowl in 2018 and went to the Pro Bowl with the team in 2018, 19 and 2020 while becoming the rare cornerback to win the Defensive Player of the Year Award in 2019.
