Stephon Gilmore Reveals True Reason For Patriots Split

Stephon Gilmore and the Carolina Panthers will go against the New England Patriots on Sunday, and everyone is so interested in the factors that led to the big split. The Patriots didn’t see much of Gilmore in training camp and he ended up on the physically unable to perform list. Head coach Bill Belichick didn’t include him in the game and the team sent him to the Carolina Panthers in Week 5, getting a 2023 sixth-rounder.

The former Defensive Player of the Year keeps getting questions about his departure from New England. Well, he opened up about this and yes, it’s related to his injury and the offer New England made. The veteran cornerback was unhappy with the way the Patriots handled his injury. He also didn’t like the contract.

“I wasn’t ready at the beginning of training camp,” Gilmore said in a conference call Wednesday ahead of Sunday’s Patriots-Panthers matchup. “I’ll be completely honest with you. But the only thing is I just didn’t like how they handled my situation with my injury. A lot went on with that that I didn’t agree with. And now that I’m here (in Carolina), I’m able to do the things that I have to do to get me back ready to where I need to be. I learned a lot (in New England), got a lot of friends there, lot of great coaches. I just didn’t like how they handled my situation with my injury.”

Stephon Gilmore had to get used to the Patriots split

Gilmore is grateful for the opportunity he was given. He won a lot of games with the Patriots, but it was time to part ways.

“I don’t want to get into specifics,” the former Patriots cornerback said. “I just didn’t agree with it. I’ll just put it behind me and get ready for this game.”

The Patriots gave him a contract extension but Gilmore wanted more. He earns less than most players at his position.

“Yeah, (the contract) was a reason also, too, but a lot goes into it,” he said. “It’s not just one specific thing. At the end of the day, it’s a business. (The Patriots) treated it like a business, and we made the best decision for each other.”

Belichick has nothing but words of praise for the veteran. His trade happened last minute and Gilmore found a way to cope with it.

“It happened last minute,” he said. “(Belichick) called me last minute. I was OK with it.”

Both sides decided to take different direction and Gilmore will now come to Foxboro as a player of the opposing team.

“Like I said, we had a conversation, and it was better for both of us to go in opposite directions,” he replied. “Related to the contract or whatever, it was better for both of us to go (our) separate ways.”