Stephon Gilmore Ruled out vs. Jets with Concussion

The New England Patriots announced Saturday that cornerback Stephon Gilmore will miss Sunday's game against the New York Jets with a concussion. 

Gilmore was one of the big offseason splashes made by the Patriots. They pried him away from the AFC East rival Buffalo Bills with a five-year contract, getting him to prop up a secondary that lost Logan Ryan to the Tennessee Titans. 

Matt Claassen of Pro Football Focus ranked the Patriots secondary as the NFL's third-best in 2016, with Malcolm Butler receiving the team's highest marks in overall grade (90.8) and coverage grade (91.1). 

Gilmore is coming off a 2016 season with the Bills in which he recorded a career-high five interceptions in 15 games and was named to his first Pro Bowl. 

However, the Patriots secondary has been woeful to this point in 2017 and allowed a league-worst 323.0 passing yards per game, while Gilmore has recorded 19 tackles, two pass breakups and an interception. 

Injuries have been a problem for Gilmore throughout his career. He hasn't played all 16 games in a season since he was a rookie in 2012 and missed at least two games each season from 2013-15. 

With Gilmore out, the Patriots will likely use Eric Rowe as the primary cornerback opposite Butler on the other side.