ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. — Call it the latest stop on his Redemption Tour,
Cornerback Stephen Gilmore was a member of the Bills for the first five years of his career before he signed a free-agent deal with the Patriots this past offseason. And so he wasn’t shocked when he heard jeers from Buffalo fans when he was warming up. He was surprised when he heard it during the game. And he wasn’t shocked when he heard it coming off the field after the game.
“I’m not surprised. You know how it is,” he said with a quiet shrug after the 23-3 win over his old team. “It’s all good.”
The Bills seemed to go at Gilmore hard in the second half, but he consistently held up in coverage. Working most of the afternoon against Buffalo receiver Zay Jones, Gilmore submitted a strong performance; at first glance, Jones had just two catches for 22 yards while matched up against Gilmore, while Gilmore had a pair of passes defensed
That included one fourth-quarter play in the end zone where Gilmore did an excellent job keeping the Bills out of the end zone, knocking away a pass for Jones and keeping the score at 23-3 with just under nine minutes left in regulation.
Back to Stephon Gilmore and Zay Jones on the fourth-down fade. pic.twitter.com/JuQymLtlFM
— Oliver Thomas (@OliverBThomas) December 3, 2017