Following a late surge from the New England Patriots, the Jacksonville Jaguars had a chance to hit back in the late stages of the AFC Championship Game. After stalling at around midfield, the Jaguars offense had one more play to get a first down to keep their drive alive.
However, it quickly came to an end after a pass intended for wide receiver Dede Westbrook was batted down by cornerback Stephon Gilmore on fourth down. According to Josh Alper of ProFootball Talk, head coach Bill Belichick had high praise for how Gilmore played the ball:
“About all the defender can do is keep up with the route, which a lot of times a good throw and a good catch can result in a completion there or undercut it and make it a tougher throw and a tougher play to execute for the quarterback,” Patriots coach Bill Belichick said on a Monday conference call. “Stephon’s got a good feel for that. … I thought he made an outstanding play. He was in really good position and then he’s long. He’s got good length and was able to pretty easily reach out — not easily — but I mean he didn’t have to leave his feet. He had enough length to run and stretch and make the play on the ball. It was just an outstanding play. I thought Stephon played well for us yesterday.”
Despite his recent strong play, Gilmore's tenure with the Patriots got off to a rocky start. New England made a surprising decision to break the bank and sign the former first-round pick to a lucrative five-year, $65 million deal last offseason.
However, the Patriots' defense got off to an abysmal start to the 2017 NFL season before Gilmore was sidelined for three games due to a concussion. However, he has managed to earn his money's worth in this year's playoffs.
Should Gilmore continue to provide stellar coverage on the talented stable of Philadelphia Eagles' wide receivers in Super Bowl LII, his struggles early on will be nothing but a distant memory.
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