FOXBOROUGH -- Just before addressing the media Wednesday, Bill Belichick released a statement on cornerback Stephon Gilmore.
"I am grateful to Stephon Gilmore for his significant contributions to our team," the statement reads. "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."
The Patriots will release Gilmore at 4 p.m. if he is not traded before then.
The cornerback was on PUP and was playing on the five-year, $65 million contract he signed with the Patriots in 2017. He was not happy with his $7 million salary for this year. Gilmore received a $5 million raise last year after winning Defensive Player of the Year in 2019, but that money came from what he would have received this year.
Gilmore is coming off a torn quad at the end of last season, but all accounts have him healthy now.
