By James Johnson
April 18, 2022
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Former all-pro cornerback and 2019 defensive player of the year Stephon Gilmore to Colts after playing 1 season with the Carolina Panthers. The 2022 NFL Draft is two weeks away and the Indianapolis Colts are trying to sharpen their defense before the start of the regular season. The Colts offense has a rising star on offense in running back Jonathan Taylor and are now looking to have a star on the other side of the ball. Gilmore may not be the same player he was when he was with the New England Patriots, but he can still perform at a high level. As a former defensive player of the year Gilmore knows what it takes to shut down some the top wide receivers in the league.
Gilmore was a standout athlete in South Pointe high school where he excelled in three different sports. His was recruited by some of the biggest division 1 colleges in the nation for his track & field performances while running 11.41 in the 100 and 23.14 in the 200. He gained notoriety all over the state of South Carolina especially when it came to how he performed on the grid iron. He played alongside other NFL future talent such as Jadeveon Clowney in high school which put even more spotlight on their school as they climbed the ranks. He played multiple positions at South Pointe which got the attention of colleges all over the nation. Both Gilmore and Clowney both decided to commit to the school closet to home which was the University of South Carolina.
In his first year as a Gamecock Stephon Gilmore would see the field early starting at the cornerback position. He would make the SEC all-freshman team finishing the season with 56 tackles and 9 pass deflections. This type of performance was rare for a freshman playing at the collegiate level, but Gilmore was a superior athlete compared to his opponents. In his sophomore season he caught his first interception at South Carolina and had a college career high 79 combined tackles. In his junior year teams became threatened by Gilmores play because his ability to play man to man coverage on receivers. This style of play forced quarterbacks to throw away from him allowing Gilmore too to see little to no action. When they did throw his way, he would make them pay racking up 4 INTS, 7 pass break ups and 47 tackles. Gilmore play made him a SEC All-American and a candidate for the Ronnie Lott award. NFL scouts and media projected Gilmore to be one of the top defensive backs going into the 2012 NFL Draft.
He was slated to be a top 10 pick going into the draft, but no one knew where he would fall on the draft board. With Andrew Luck and RG3 at the top of the list Gilmore was projected to go between the 5th and 15 pick overall in the first round. Gilmore would be taken with the 10th overall pick to the Buffalo Bills in the 2012 NFL Draft. The Buffalo Bills hadn’t had much success in the 2000’s era and were still getting over the upsetting losses in the 90’s. The franchise felt as though Stephon Gilmore could help change life in Buffalo with some of the tools in his repertoire. Gilmore would start all 16 games as a rookie finishing his season with a career-high 61 combined tackles, on INT and 2 forced fumbles. Gilmore showed great potential in his first year and continued to develop as a pro showing elite ability. Over the next couple of seasons Gilmore would miss many games because of injury but when available he would make his presence felt. In his fifth season with the Buffalo Bills Gilmore would make his first pro bowl finishing the season with 48 tackles and 5 interceptions which opened the doors for free agency.
The franchise corner decided to join the 5-time super bowl champion New England Patriots franchise in the 2017 offseason making their defense even more lethal. Gilmore became a key part of the defense which made it difficult for offensive coordinators to scheme for him. He was a man-to-man cornerback who could cover tons of ground with his physical size and cat quickness. In 2018 he had arguably his best season statically starting all 16 games with 20 pass deflections and first career sack. Gilmore was phenomenal in the 2019 NFL playoffs helping New England win their 6th Super Bowl and his first Lombardi trophy. Gilmore would go onto make countless first team all-pros and pro bowls. He would comeback in the 2019-2020 season with the same intensity leading the league with 6 INTs and tied his career-high 20 passes deflected. This performance would earn him defensive player of the year and another trip to the pro bowl.
After 2021 season was cut short due to injury Gilmore would be traded to the Carolina Panthers in the offseason playing in only 8 games having his worst season statistically. Stephon Gilmore to the Colts is probably the best news Indianapolis fans had in a long time. Now with veteran quarterback Matt Ryan at the helm and Gilmore a leader of the defense maybe the Colts can contend for a championship in 2023.
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