According to The Athletic’s Jeff Howe, the New England Patriots attempted to re-acquire former NFL Defensive Player of the Year Stephon Gilmore, before the Dallas Cowboys swooped in and traded for the 32-year old in the offseason.
Buy Patriots TicketsIn order to acquire Stephon Gilmore this offseason, the Cowboys had to beat out … the Patriots.
Also in here, some early discussions on a potential new deal for Dak and an update on free agent RBs Zeke Elliott and Dalvin Cook. https://t.co/r2PyiQ6zuN
— Jeff Howe (@jeffphowe) August 6, 2023
The Patriots clearly signaled a need for a top boundary corner after letting J.C. Jackson and Gilmore both go, along with seeing second-year phenom Jack Jones suspended to end the 2022 season.
Ultimately, the team went in the direction of selecting Christian Gonzalez at No. 17 overall in the 2023 NFL draft, after trading back from their original No. 14 spot. It was rumored they were considering former Alabama running back Jahmyr Gibbs at that spot and didn’t expect Gonzalez to be available at even No. 14.
Gonzalez’s fall to the Patriots is still an unknown considering the rookie has looked like a solid outside corner in camp thus far. If the Patriots’ recent draft history is considered, they have taken their biggest need in the first round in the past three drafts to fill in as an immediate starter.
With this report, it is likely they would have went corner regardless of Gonzalez’s availability, but the Patriots sure are lucky to have landed what many believe was the best corner in the class.
