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Former Patriots star sees ‘a lot of myself’ in Christian Gonzalez
"It's real cool to be able to talk to him any time. He's one of the best to ever do it."
Stephon Gilmore left quite a mark on the Patriots during his four seasons in Foxborough.
Along with helping New England take home a sixth Super Bowl during the 2018 season, the skilled corner earned three Pro Bowl nods and was recognized as the league’s Defensive Player of the Year in 2019 after recording six interceptions and 20 pass deflections over 16 games.
Gilmore’s quiet demeanor and poised approach while locking down opposing pass-catchers has drawn some comparisons to current Patriots corner Christian Gonzalez — who impressed over four games during his rookie year in 2023 before suffering a season-ending shoulder injury.
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Speaking to ESPN’s Mike Reiss, Gilmore agreed with the sentiment that Gonzalez stands as a worthy comparison to the former Patriots star defensive back.
“It’s his demeanor and how he carries himself on the field — he doesn’t say much but he’s a team player,” Gilmore told Reiss. “One thing I know he can do is really cover man to man and shut guys down. That’s one thing I definitely like about him.
“Obviously, I watched him when he got drafted, I knew the Patriots needed a corner, and I was happy they got him. I texted [cornerbacks coach] Mike Pellegrino and said, ‘He’s going to be good.'”
Gilmore, 33, is still looking to land with an NFL team during training camp as a free agent. But even though he’s still focusing on his own NFL career, Gilmore told Reiss that he hopes to serve as a valuable resource to Gonzalez as he looks to develop into one of the league’s top young corners.
“I just told him, ‘Whatever you need, just ask me,'” Gilmore said of Gonzalez. “I always try to help out the young guys as much as I can. … I tell him all the time, ‘I wish I would have known what I know now in Year 5 or 4.’ But if I can teach a guy like him, in his second year, the sky is the limit for him.
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“I see a lot of myself in him. The thing about playing corner is the mind game. If you get the mind right, I think he has all the ability to be whatever he wants to be.”
Gonzalez, 22, noted that even though he and Gilmore didn’t share the same locker room at Gillette Stadium, both corners started training together in Dallas during the offseason.
“It’s real cool to be able to talk to him any time. He’s one of the best to ever do it,” Gonzalez said of Gilmore. “He plays with great smarts and knows the game really well. When you watch his film, you can see how he played like that, so I’m trying to mimic certain things.”
This is not the first time that Gonzalez has been compared to Gilmore, with veteran corner Jonathan Jones noting the similarity late last month.
“Much of the same since he’s been here last year,” Jones said of Gonzalez. “He comes in, doesn’t say much. He kind of reminds me of Gilmore in the sense that he doesn’t really say much but when they step onto the field they’re playmakers. So, it’s exciting to see him back coming off of an injury, I think it’s going to be good for him.”
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Despite the severity of his shoulder injury last October, Gonzalez has received a clean bill of health from New England this summer and has been a full participant so far during training camp.
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