Brian Flores was excited to add Stephon Gilmore. He had coached Gilmore with the New England Patriots, where they won a Super Bowl together in 2018. Khyree Jackson’s tragic death and Mekhi Blackmon’s ACL injury have decimated the Minnesota Vikings’ already shallow depth at corner. In response, the Vikings added five cornerbacks, including a Day 1 starter in Gilmore.
Gilmore has much to offer Minnesota’s defense, but Flores doesn’t need Harrison Smith sending him after the quarterback.
“Yesterday, we had something drawn up, and Harrison Smith sent him on a blitz,” Flores said. “I told Harrison, ‘He’s not here to blitz.’”
Gilmore signed a one-year, $10 million deal with the Vikings. He isn’t the player he once was, but Minnesota doesn’t need him to be an All-Pro. The Vikings only need Gilmore to shore up a decimated unit.
The 33-year-old corner will turn 34 this season and is excited to play with Smith, 35, who was in his draft class. The Buffalo Bills took Gilmore 10th overall in 2012, the same year the Vikings took Smith 29th. For context, Andrew Luck went first overall in that draft, Robert Griffin III second, and Minnesota took Matt Kalil fourth.
“He’s been able to make plays, stand in the same place his whole career,” Gilmore said of Smith. “Someone that done see the same amount of ball I done see, you know? We see the game the same way, so it’s going to be fun.”
Unlike Smith, Gilmore has become a journeyman late in his career. He spent his first five seasons with the Buffalo Bills, where he became a Pro Bowler under Rex Ryan in 2016. At age 27, Gilmore signed with the New England Patriots. He made three Pro Bowls in Bill Belichick’s defense and crossed paths with Flores.
Flores coached Gilmore in 2017 and 2018 before taking the Miami Dolphins head coaching job in 2019. Gilmore was an All-Pro and won a Super Bowl with Flores in 2018. A year later, he was the Associated Press’ Defensive Player of the Year.
”His career speaks for itself: the accolades and all, the talent,” Flores says of Gilmore. “But Steph the person is a great human being, a great teammate. He’s going to be great for the young guys in our group: just understanding what it takes to be a professional, his maturity, his toughness, and just his global understanding of the game.”
However, the Patriots are always a year ahead of moving on from a player than a year late. In 2021, they refused to rework his contract and traded him to the Carolina Panthers. It was a homecoming for Gilmore, who played quarterback and corner at the same Rock Hill, S.C. high school as Jadeveon Clowney.
Gilmore made his final Pro Bowl in 2021 but only played eight games and made three starts that year. He signed with the Indianapolis Colts a year later, and they traded him to the Dallas Cowboys last season. Gilmore hasn’t made the Pro Bowl in two years. Still, PFF gave him a 79.1 grade in 2022 and 74.4 in 2023.
He says playing for five different teams in five years has been difficult on his family. However, Gilmore knows he only has so much time left.
“It’s been a little tough, but it’s part of the business,” said Gilmore, who met with the Vikings on August 10 but consulted with his family before signing on August 19. “You can’t play this game forever, so you got to take advantage of all your opportunities. Not too many guys can play the game as long as I have.”
Gilmore feels good because he missed most of camp while teams, including the Panthers, courted him in free agency. He says the secret to his success is treating his body well and eating right. However, Gilmore has also had to adapt to different defenses. While he excels in man coverage, which allows him to play in myriad defenses, he’s had to learn new schemes as he’s gotten older.
Flores’ time in New England has influenced his defense, and Gilmore should pick it up again quickly. However, he will run a different defense this season after the Cincinnati Bengals cracked the code on it last year.
“It’s some of the same stuff (Flores ran in New England),” said Gilmore. “A little different, but some of the same stuff.”
After relying on zone coverage last year, the Vikings are switching to a more man-coverage-heavy scheme this season, which plays to Gilmore’s strengths. Gilmore says he’s willing to work with Minnesota’s young players, and they would be wise to learn from the 13-year veteran.
“Harry will tell you we’ve got one of the oldest [defensive back] rooms [in the league] now,” said Shaquill Griffin, a 29-year-old former Pro Bowler. “We’ve got some guys who are 29 and up and then some guys who are 25 and down. So yeah, we’ve got some older guys in this group. We’ve got a lot of guys who can learn from guys like that; shoot, I’m one of them.”
Self-care and malleability have served Gilmore well. He’s learned how to take care of himself and adapt to a new situation every year. He’ll line up where his coaches want him to, play within the scheme, and stick next to his man in coverage. The Vikings made a good signing so long as Gilmore allows them to play man coverage and place Byron Murphy Jr. inside on nickel packages.
Few corners reach their age-34 seasons, but those who have typically fared well. Brent Grimes, Terence Newman, and Rashean Mathis earned grades of 70 or over from PFF at age 34. Only Johnathan Joseph (48.8) graded poorly in his age-34 season. Players at Gilmore’s age are liable to decline rapidly, but Flores should know how to manage him. Flores will ask Gilmore to do a lot this year, but it’s safe to say he won’t be sending him on a blitz anytime soon.
