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The Miami Dolphins had three healthy cornerbacks in Sunday’s win over the Pittsburgh Stealers as the secondary has been hamstrung by injuries all season.
Safety Brandon Jones, cornerback Nik Needham and cornerback Trill Williams are all on injured reserve while Byron Jones has remained on the physically unable-to-perform list since the season began.
Players like Noah Igbinohene and Kader Kohou have stepped up. Still, the secondary is the foundation of Miami’s defense, so general manager Chris Grier may try to trade for some depth at the position before the Nov. 1 trade deadline.
The Indianapolis Colts benched quarterback Matt Ryan and the decision to start rookie Sam Ehlinger indicates that the team may not see itself lasting in the playoff race through November.
That is why trading for Stephon Gilmore would make sense for the Dolphins. Gilmore signed a two-year deal with the Colts this offseason with a cap hit of $7,750,000 this year. Additionally, Gilmore has a cap hit of nearly $12 million next year, but the team can decide to move on from him with $2 million of dead money on the salary cap for 2023.
Gilmore began his career with Buffalo before spending four years in New England. He shined on the Patriots, earning First-Team AP All-Pro honors in both 2018 and 2019, when he was also named defensive player of the year with six interceptions and 20 passes defended.
I remember Josh Boyer saying in the offseason that he thinks of defense w/ the secondary in mind first and that was fully on display after Jones went down. The way he used Fejedelem, McKinley and Rowe in certain matchups to disguise coverages was impressive.
— Daniel Oyefusi (@DanielOyefusi) October 25, 2022
Defensive coordinator Josh Boyer, who was New England’s cornerbacks coach in 2018, runs a defense similar to the one Gilmore had success in with the Patriots. With $6 million in cap space to work with, the Dolphins should see what it would take for the Colts to move on from Gilmore.
Miami forfeited a 2023 first-round pick for violating league policies pertaining to the integrity of the game, but still has San Francisco’s first-round pick, along with New England’s third-round pick.
With two third-round picks to work with, Stephon Gilmore could be a trade deadline difference-maker for a team that needs all the help it can get in the secondary.
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