ATLANTA — Stephon Gilmore has a chance to finish off one of the more remarkable seasons for any member of the Patriots in the last 20 years with a win on Sunday.
He’d become only one of seven players in the Tom Brady-Bill Belichick Era to land a first-team All-Pro nod, a Pro Bowl nomination and a Super Bowl ring, all in one year.
The previous winners? Ty Law, Richard Seymour, Adam Vinatieri, Rob Gronkowski, Darrelle Revis and Matthew Slater. Heady company for the 28-year-old, who has lived up to his rep as a lockdown corner from start to finish this season, silencing some of the league’s best receivers along the way.
“I didn’t think about that,” when I informed him Wednesday of the possibility he could nab the trifecta with a Patriots’ win over the Rams.
“That’s a great opportunity. It’s a big accomplishment — that’s one thing I still want, a Super Bowl ring. I’m going to try and do whatever it takes to get that done.”
Gilmore redefines the term soft-spoken. You have to lean in and listen closely when he talks. He doesn’t appear to be interested in self-promotion — asked if we’re going to see SG24 gear sometime soon, he just laughs. He doesn’t have a trademarked celebration. And he talks with the media after every game, in good times and bad, after wins and losses.
And so, instead of trying to get Gilmore to open up, we went to his fellow defensive backs (and one former high school rival turned NFL teammate) to act as a hype man for him and his talents. What did we find? If Gilmore won’t expand on his greatness, his teammate are more than willing to do it for him.
“It’s tough to complete the ball on him,” said Brady. “We feel that way in practice. I’ve played with a lot of good corners, and he’s right up there with the best of them. He knocks the ball away, intercepts the ball, makes the quarterback pay. He’s physical, good in the run game, good in zone, good in short, intermediate, deep. I mean, he’s all-around just been a great player for us.”
“He’s not a pro, man. He’s a professional,” says safety Patrick Chung. “The professional.”
Chung is a guy who lives life with an edge — at one point last year, he cursed out the media for what he saw as reporters badgering Gilmore while the cornerback was returning from a concussion. That same sort of loyalty for his teammate came through in conversation Wednesday.
“That’s a silent killer, right there. That’s my nickname for him,” Chung added. “You guys all know it — we don’t have to say anything. He’s a competitor, a professional. He’s a damn good player.”
Of course, Gilmore isn’t always silent. He made headlines when he took a subtle shot at Jalen Ramsey in the regular season, and had no qualms calling out Antonio Brown after a December loss to the Steelers. Former high school rival Cordarrelle Patterson knows what's up -- he recalled going head-to-head with Gilmore back in South Carolina, and said Gilmore wasn’t always so quiet.
“Steph pretends like he’s quiet, but he can talk so much shit, man. It kills me,” Patterson said with a laugh. “These days, he does some talking on the field. He doesn’t say much. But back in high school, we used to compete all the time, and he was always taking smack, man. For real.
“These days, when that happens, we all laugh. ‘Steph, man. Sit down. That ain’t you. Stop talking.’ It’s rare,” Patterson added. “It takes a lot to get Steph mad. You have to be saying some dirty stuff, stuff you’re going to do to him. But then, he shuts you down and you don’t want to hear any of that anymore.”
According to Jason McCourty and others, the fire Patterson alluded to comes through frequently, including during walkthroughs.
“Steph, in walkthroughs a lot of the times, he doesn’t let the receivers catch the ball,” laughs McCourty. “And as quiet as he is in games, there are games after the play where he’s going at it with Antonio Brown or going at it with DaVante Adams.
“Most of the time, he’s a quiet assassin. When he goes out there on the field, he takes it personal on whoever he’s guarding to make sure they don’t catch the ball on him.”
He’s also carved out a rep as a mentor for some of the younger corners on the roster. Rookie J.C. Jackson says Gilmore is a talker — he just picks and chooses his moments.
“He really doesn’t talk much, but if you need help, he’ll help you. If you have a question, he’ll speak on it. He’s a great teammate,” Jackson said. “He’ll talk, but it won’t be much.
“But Steph is a good dude. Coming in as a rookie and watching that guy, he has so much experience. He’s good, man. People don’t even know — he’s one of the best corners in this league.”
When it comes to Sunday, Gilmore is well-aware he’ll have a lot on his plate. Whether it’ll be single coverage against Robert Woods or Brandin Cooks, he will again find himself in the middle of the action, as he has been all year.
And if the Patriots end up winning, he’ll let someone else remind you that he’ll deserve to stand with some of the greatest single-season performances in franchise history.
“It’s a great compliment,” he said when reminded of what he’s been able to accomplish to this point in the season. “But we have one more game left. I’m going to give it all I have for that game. And that’s all that matters.”