Getty Stephon Gilmore
Let’s not bury the lede here: the New England Patriots‘ decision–which ultimately means Bill Belichick’s decision–to trade Stephon Gilmore was a bad one. What’s even worse is the measly sixth-round pick the Patriots got back from the Carolina Panthers for the former Defensive Player of the Year.
Belichick is not beyond reproof and with this latest screwup, members of the media are letting him hear about it. The Boston Globe’s Ben Volin dropped this Bitmoji-fueled comparison tweet that highlighted the totally reasonable return the Philadelphia Eagles got for dealing Joe Flacco to the New York Jets alongside the Gilmore return.
Eagles got a 2022 sixth round pick for Joe Flacco.
Patriots got a 2023 sixth round pick for Stephon Gilmore.
While Volin helped to put the horrendous deal into perspective, he is not the only one pointing fingers at Belichick for the bad trade.
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Belichick Was the Biggest Loser in the Deal
USA Today’s Nate Davis called Belichick one of the biggest losers in the deal that sent Gilmore to the Panthers, and this was his explanation.
Gilmore’s contract issues have festered for more than a year. Coming off his defensive MVP performance, New England gave him a $5 million raise in 2020, but that only served to kick the financial can down the road given he was due to make less than $6 million in 2021. The quad issue likely complicated any trade talks in the offseason, but getting a 2023 Day 3 pick certainly doesn’t feel like much for a player of his caliber. This also serves a reminder that most players, no matter how good – Brady, Gilmore, Richard Seymour, Randy Moss, the list goes on – tend to leave New England under a cloud, and that might be a problem for Belichick’s free agent recruiting efforts in the future given Brady is no longer around to serve as Lombardi Trophy catnip.
Davis makes a strong point, but it’s also one that was seemingly disproven this past offseason. Many players do leave New England with some acrimony, but guys still flocked to Foxborough this past offseason to sign with Belichick and the Patriots.
Perhaps maybe this breakup with Gilmore in conjunction with less-than-Patriots-like finishes in 2020 and a sub-500 record in 2021 could be enough to shift things against Belichick.
The Patriots’ Secondary Is Suddenly Ravaged by Injury
Patriots cornerback Johnathan Jones is now out for the season because of a shoulder injury, but New England was already thin at the position before Belichick dealt Gilmore.
Now, the Patriots are seemingly scrambling for depth in the secondary working out a variety of cornerbacks when they just let an elite one walk out of their locker room for a sixth-round pick. Belichick is a legend, but this is not a good thing.
The Patriots badly need for J.C. Jackson, Myles Bryant, Joejuan Williams and Jalen Mills to make everyone forget this whole thing happened. That’s a tough task.
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