Stephon Gilmore: Receivers are too scared to talk trash during games

The New England Patriots’ Stephon Gilmore – arguably the best cornerback in the NFL today – claims that receivers are afraid to talk trash to him.

Stephon Gilmore isn’t one to talk trash. While many modern cornerbacks have become more and more outspoken, brash, and braggadocios as the league shifts further into prioritizing the passing game, Gilmore has stayed true to his personality and remained one of the more soft-spoken, media-averse star players in the NFL.

Ever since he first began his professional career with the Buffalo Bills, Gilmore has preferred to let his play on the field do the talking for him. He has been exceptional ever since he entered the league back in 2012, but he was never quite a household name while playing for New England’s division rival.

Even when he joined the Patriots back in 2017, Gilmore was mainly known for being the player Bill Belichick decided to open the Foxborough coffers for instead of Malcolm Butler.

Not anymore, though.

Gilmore is widely viewed as the best cornerback in the NFL today, over some of his more vocally-aggressive and outlandish peers like Jalen Ramsey, Marcus Peters, and Josh Norman, just to name a few. He earned First-team All-Pro recognition last season (his first time) and also was nominated to his second Pro Bowl. Through 12 weeks of the 2019 season, he looks like a lock to earn his second First-team All-Pro naming and his third Pro Bowl nomination.

Pressed on whether or not he thinks all the hype surrounding his season is fair and accurate, Gilmore did go so far as to agree that he believes he’s the best corner in the league. He referred to his game tape as proof at first, but over subsequent weeks, has become a bit more verbal with the media as to the reasons why he should be considered the NFL’s premier shutdown cornerback.

He also recently told the NFL Network’s Deion Sanders that despite the increased level of attention he’s receiving in the public eye this year and from opponents, the wide receivers he’s tasked with covering don’t ever try to trash talk him. According to NESN’s Adam London who reported the story, the reason why is simple: wideouts are too afraid of Gilmore to trash-talk him.

“They don’t talk to me. I think they’re scared,” Gilmore told Sanders. “They’re scared to talk to them cause I’m on them every snap. … I’m up in their face every snap. Every snap I’m up in their face, they give up at the end. So that’s my goal every game. Go in, pressed up every snap and I put it on the quarterback.”

Gilmore is clearly finding his voice with the media and beginning to verbalize his feelings when it comes to his abilities and the opponents he’s facing on a weekly basis during the NFL season. He also recently spoke negatively of the Eagles’ Zach Ertz, saying the prolific Philadelphia tight end will “cry” if he doesn’t get his way with officials, per CBS Sports’ Jeff Kerr.