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Draft Week may have just seen its first big surprise in Dallas.
As reporters assembled midday Tuesday at Cowboys headquarters for the team's annual pre-draft press conference, an unlikely figure was spotted on his way out. Adding to the intrigue, he's a decorated veteran free agent who's done a previous stint with the club and also just happens to play a position that's a current need.
Five-time Pro Bowl cornerback Stephon Gilmore was back at The Star in Frisco, though it wasn't immediately clear why.
And the front office offered no real scoop when asked about it a few minutes later.
"We're always looking to make things better," Cowboys executive vice president Stephen Jones said. "It doesn't always mean that if they're in the building that there's a deal in the works."
Still, the timing is curious. And, knowing the Cowboys, almost certainly intentional. That meeting could have been scheduled at a time when the entire media pool wouldn't spot Gilmore. Gilmore could have easily been ushered out a side door.
No, the Cowboys made sure the veteran free agent was seen exiting the complex. And they wanted to be asked about it in the pre-draft press conference. Sure, it's business as usual... but it's also a possible foreshadowing of how the team is thinking- and maybe even a little bit of a smokescreen- just days before the draft.
For what it's worth, NFL insider Ian Rapoport posted on X shortly after the press conference that "the Cowboys are not signing Stephon Gilmore today."
Gilmore spent the 2023 season as a Cowboy, starting all 17 games that year, picking off two throws and defending 13 passes. Originally thought to be the team's CB2 behind Trevon Diggs when Dallas traded for him in the spring, Gilmore's role increased significantly when Diggs was lost for the season to injury.
But he was deemed expendable when Mike Zimmer took over the defense in 2024, and Gilmore signed a one-year deal with Minnesota. Last year with the Vikings, he started 15 games and recorded one interception.
The No. 10 overall pick in 2012's draft out of South Carolina, Gilmore spent his first five seasons in Buffalo before going to New England, where he spent arguably his best four years. One-year stints in Carolina and Indianapolis followed before the Cowboys traded for him.
Gilmore will turn 35 years old shortly after the 2025 season gets underway, but he could potentially provide experienced leadership for a young cornerback room in Dallas. Diggs is rehabbing from January knee surgery and may miss the start of the season, and Jourdan Lewis is now in Jacksonville. DaRon Bland returns, as does second-year man Caelen Carson, and the team traded for former first-round pick Kaiir Elam, but none of them is a two-time first-team All-Pro with a Super Bowl ring on his finger.
Gilmore could be a more than serviceable short-term Band-Aid for the secondary while they await Diggs's return to action.
Or his visit could be an attempt to deflect other teams' attention away from the Cowboys' true intentions in this weekend's draft.
The Cowboys have met with several top cornerback prospects during this year's pre-draft process, including Benjamin Morrison (Notre Dame), Jahdae Barron (Texas), Maxwell Hairston (Kentucky), Trey Amos (Mississippi), and Shavon Revel (East Carolina). Michigan's Will Johnson, considered this year's top cornerback, has also been a popular target for Dallas in mock drafts.
A reunion with Gilmore would almost certainly alter the Cowboys' draft strategy at the position.
Follow Cowboys Wire on Facebook to join in on the conversation with fellow fans!
This article originally appeared on Cowboys Wire: Former Cowboys CB Stephon Gilmore spotted at The Star in Frisco
Continue reading...
As reporters assembled midday Tuesday at Cowboys headquarters for the team's annual pre-draft press conference, an unlikely figure was spotted on his way out. Adding to the intrigue, he's a decorated veteran free agent who's done a previous stint with the club and also just happens to play a position that's a current need.
Five-time Pro Bowl cornerback Stephon Gilmore was back at The Star in Frisco, though it wasn't immediately clear why.
And the front office offered no real scoop when asked about it a few minutes later.
"We're always looking to make things better," Cowboys executive vice president Stephen Jones said. "It doesn't always mean that if they're in the building that there's a deal in the works."
Still, the timing is curious. And, knowing the Cowboys, almost certainly intentional. That meeting could have been scheduled at a time when the entire media pool wouldn't spot Gilmore. Gilmore could have easily been ushered out a side door.
No, the Cowboys made sure the veteran free agent was seen exiting the complex. And they wanted to be asked about it in the pre-draft press conference. Sure, it's business as usual... but it's also a possible foreshadowing of how the team is thinking- and maybe even a little bit of a smokescreen- just days before the draft.
For what it's worth, NFL insider Ian Rapoport posted on X shortly after the press conference that "the Cowboys are not signing Stephon Gilmore today."
Gilmore spent the 2023 season as a Cowboy, starting all 17 games that year, picking off two throws and defending 13 passes. Originally thought to be the team's CB2 behind Trevon Diggs when Dallas traded for him in the spring, Gilmore's role increased significantly when Diggs was lost for the season to injury.
But he was deemed expendable when Mike Zimmer took over the defense in 2024, and Gilmore signed a one-year deal with Minnesota. Last year with the Vikings, he started 15 games and recorded one interception.
The No. 10 overall pick in 2012's draft out of South Carolina, Gilmore spent his first five seasons in Buffalo before going to New England, where he spent arguably his best four years. One-year stints in Carolina and Indianapolis followed before the Cowboys traded for him.
Gilmore will turn 35 years old shortly after the 2025 season gets underway, but he could potentially provide experienced leadership for a young cornerback room in Dallas. Diggs is rehabbing from January knee surgery and may miss the start of the season, and Jourdan Lewis is now in Jacksonville. DaRon Bland returns, as does second-year man Caelen Carson, and the team traded for former first-round pick Kaiir Elam, but none of them is a two-time first-team All-Pro with a Super Bowl ring on his finger.
Gilmore could be a more than serviceable short-term Band-Aid for the secondary while they await Diggs's return to action.
Or his visit could be an attempt to deflect other teams' attention away from the Cowboys' true intentions in this weekend's draft.
The Cowboys have met with several top cornerback prospects during this year's pre-draft process, including Benjamin Morrison (Notre Dame), Jahdae Barron (Texas), Maxwell Hairston (Kentucky), Trey Amos (Mississippi), and Shavon Revel (East Carolina). Michigan's Will Johnson, considered this year's top cornerback, has also been a popular target for Dallas in mock drafts.
A reunion with Gilmore would almost certainly alter the Cowboys' draft strategy at the position.
Follow Cowboys Wire on Facebook to join in on the conversation with fellow fans!
This article originally appeared on Cowboys Wire: Former Cowboys CB Stephon Gilmore spotted at The Star in Frisco
Continue reading...
