The Minnesota Vikings agreed to a one-year contract with Stephon Gilmore on Sunday. He is the fifth cornerback the team has added since training camp started, and he is the most experienced of them all, as the team aims to strengthen this important position.
Gilmore will receive $7 million guaranteed on a contract that could reach up to $10 million, according to his agent Jason Chayut. The 2019 AP NFL Defensive Player of the Year with New England and a five-time Pro Bowl selection is joining his fifth team in five years.
With 31 interceptions in 165 career regular-season games, Gilmore ranks fourth among active players in career interceptions. He is behind his new teammate Harrison Smith (34), Tyrann Mathieu (33), and Tashaun Gipson (33).
Patrick Peterson (36) and Marcus Peters (33) also have more career interceptions, but they are still free agents. Smith was drafted by the Vikings in 2012 with the 29th overall pick, 19 spots after Gilmore was selected by Buffalo.
Gilmore, who will turn 34 on September 19, was not signed to a team after playing for Dallas in 2023.
He became a free agent after injuring his shoulder in the last regular-season game and playing through the injury during the Cowboys’ wild-card round loss in the playoffs. He later had surgery for a torn labrum.
Gilmore, from South Carolina, played for the Bills for five years before moving to the rival Patriots in 2017. He won a Super Bowl with the Patriots in the 2018 season and played there for four years.
After leading the NFL with six interceptions and 20 passes defensed and earning his second straight All-Pro selection in 2019, Gilmore’s 2020 season was affected by a positive COVID-19 test and a torn quadriceps.
When the injury persisted into the next training camp, he was placed on the physically unable to perform list and was eventually traded to Carolina.
He signed with Indianapolis in 2022 and had a strong season before being traded to the Cowboys last year for a fifth-round draft pick. He played a key role in helping Dallas manage the absence of star cornerback Trevon Diggs, who had a torn ACL.
