FRISCO, Texas — The Dallas Cowboys acquired five-time Pro Bowl cornerback Stephon Gilmore in a trade with the Indianapolis Colts, sources confirmed.
The Cowboys will give up in a 2023 fifth-round compensatory pick for Gilmore, who is a former two-time All-Pro.
Gilmore, who is his fourth team in as many years, may not be the same player he was when he was the 2019 NFL Defensive Player of the Year with the New England Patriots.
But he had a strong strong season in 2022 with Colts when he started every game and recorded 66 tackles, two interceptions, and 11 passes defensed.
Gilmore is set to make $7.96 million this season in the final year of a two-year he signed with the Colts last season.
Gilmore, who will be 33 in 2023, has not been the same player since 2019 when he had six interceptions and helped lead the Patriots to it’s sixth Super Bowl title.
A quadriceps injury ended his 2020 campaign early. He was then traded to Carolina Panthers for a first-round pick in 2021. He signed with the Colts in 2022 where he showed he can still be a reliable cornerback.
He gives the Cowboys a proven veteran cornerback to play opposite Pro Bowler Trevon Diggs and strengthens a defense and a secondary that was already one of the best in the league.
In addition to Diggs and Gilmore at cornerback, the Cowboys have DeRon Bland, Kelvin Joseph and veteran nickel back Jourdan Lewis.
It was the second big move made by the Cowboys on Tuesday, who re-signed safety Donovan Wilson on a three-year, $24 million deal earlier in the day.
One day after being one of three times not to make any moves on the first day of free agency, the Cowboys struck to retained a valued member of the secondary with a contract that the first two seasons fully guaranteed at $13.5 million.
Wilson started all 17 games for the Cowboys in 2022, recording a team-high 101 tackles with seven tackles for loss, nine QB hits, and 5.0 sacks.
Wilson is a big part of the Cowboys’ big-nickel scheme, which features three safeties, including Jayron Kearse and Malik Hooker.
The move came one day after the Cowboys restructured the contract of receiver Michael Gallup, freeing up $7 million on space.
The Cowboys, however, did see three free agents find homes elsewhere.
Guard Connor McGovern, linebacker Luke Gifford and receiver Noah Brown agreed to terms with the Buffalo Bills, Tennessee Titans and Houston Texans, respectively.
