Chiefs Named Top Destination For Former All-Pro Defender

The Kansas City Chiefs are going for a third straight Super Bowl championship and their fourth in six years this coming season. While they have one of the most, if not the most, talented rosters in the NFL, a little extra help would always be useful.

Unlike in past years, they won it all last season largely thanks to their defense, which ranked second in both points and total yards allowed. But they lost star cornerback L’Jarius Sneed this offseason when they traded him to the Tennessee Titans.

While they have another excellent corner in All-Pro First Team selection Trent McDuffie, the Chiefs could use another stud on the other side of their secondary.

Kristopher Knox of Bleacher Report suggested that the Chiefs would be a great fit for Stephon Gilmore, who has been a star corner for the past decade.

“Cornerback Stephon Gilmore probably doesn’t come across as a potential bargain at first blush,” wrote Knox. “He’s a five-time Pro Bowler, a former NFL Defensive Player of the Year and is coming off a strong campaign with the Dallas Cowboys.

“Gilmore played 94 percent of the defensive snaps last season and started all 17 games. allowed an opposing passer rating of only 82.7 in coverage.

“However, Gilmore is also a 33-year-old who carried a cap hit of only $10.0 million last season—well below the going rate for a high-end starter. He could be willing to take even less if it helps him find the right situation.

“… If Gilmore is hoping to chase a championship, the right opportunity could be in Kansas City.”

Could Stephon Gilmore help determine who wins the Super Bowl?

Gilmore is likely a future Hall of Famer, and although he wasn’t named to the Pro Bowl last season, he had 13 passes defended and two interceptions for a Cowboys team that went 12-5 in the regular season.

At times in the regular season, the Cowboys’ defense looked like an impenetrable wall, and Gilmore was a big reason why.

He’s now a free agent, and it looks very unlikely Dallas will invite him back, partly because it is looking to stay under the salary cap in order to give big contract extensions to pass rusher Micah Parsons, wide receiver CeeDee Lamb and quarterback Dak Prescott.

Gilmore is getting up there in age (last season was his 12th in the NFL), so if he were to end up with the two-time defending world champs, perhaps he would have a somewhat diminished role. But he could still help.

He has already won a Vince Lombardi Trophy while with the New England Patriots during the 2018 season, so he would also supply even more championship experience to a team that is already rich in it.

Knox also mentioned the San Francisco 49ers as a potential landing spot for Gilmore, the team Kansas City beat in last season’s Super Bowl.

The 49ers’ defense, which was the best in the NFL in 2022, took a step back last season, and its secondary does have some holes in it despite the presence of Pro Bowler Charvarius Ward, a key member of the Chiefs’ first Super Bowl-winning team of the Patrick Mahomes era in 2019.

Perhaps Gilmore could swing the outcome of Super Bowl LIX depending on which team he decides to sign with.

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