Stephon Gilmore Released by Patriots After 4 Seasons After Trade Attempt

Stephon Gilmore's time in New England is over. 

ESPN's Adam Schefter reported Wednesday that the Patriots plan to release the veteran cornerback, who has spent the 2021 season on the physically unable to perform list.

Gilmore confirmed Schefter's report by posting the following statement on Twitter regarding his departure:

Doug Kyed of Pro Football Focus reported the Patriots attempted to trade Gilmore before his release.

Gilmore came into the offseason with a complicated contract situation. The team restructured his deal in 2020, essentially moving $4.5 million from the 2021 season to 2020. That was the equivalent of a cash advance, but it meant his lower 2021 salary would likely bring another round of negotiations between him and the Pats. 

Schefter shed more light on the financial details involved in Gilmore's release:

Rumors circulated in the offseason that he might be traded, especially after he skipped the team's mandatory minicamps, which proved to be prescient. 

The 31-year-old remains one of the top corners in the game when healthy. He is a four-time Pro Bowler, two-time first-team All-Pro, one-time Super Bowl champion and the 2019 Defensive Player of the Year. He appeared in 11 games in 2020, registering 37 tackles, an interception, three passes defended and a forced fumble.

Gilmore was named to the Pro Bowl in each of the past three seasons, and he enjoyed one of the best seasons ever by a cornerback in 2019 when he recorded six interceptions and 20 passes defended, both of which led the NFL.

Although he began his career with the Buffalo Bills and played there for five seasons, Gilmore came into his own as part of Patriots head coach Bill Belichick's defensive system.

While Gilmore hasn't played this season because of a quad injury, he was scheduled to come off the PUP list in Week 6, meaning he may soon be ready to play for whichever team signs him.

The Patriots are 1-3 and seemingly on track for a second straight season without the playoffs, so Gilmore has the opportunity to catch on with a contender and vie for a second career Super Bowl win.