NFL Rumors: How Patriots’ Stephon Gilmore Felt About Trade Chatter

Stephon Gilmore is staying put. At least for the remainder of the current season.

Gilmore was a popular subject of rumors leading up to Tuesday’s NFL trade deadline. The three-time Pro Bowl selection, of course, is one of the best defensive players in football, and capitalizing on his trade value could have been a wise move for the Patriots if they are, indeed, bound for a rebuild.

NFL insider Josina Anderson caught up with Gilmore shortly after the deadline passed, and it doesn’t seem as though the reigning Defensive Player of the Year was at all fazed by the bevy of rumors.

Gilmore’s future in Foxboro still is up in the air. The 30-year-old is in line for a base salary of $7 million for the final year of his current deal, and it’s tough to imagine he’ll be content with playing in 2021 under that figure. The Patriots will be in a favorable salary cap situation over the offseason, but it remains to be seen how open they’d be to giving a lucrative deal to a player soon to be on the wrong side of 30.