Colts trade CB Stephon Gilmour to Cowboys in fifth round: Source

The Indianapolis Colts traded cornerback Stephon Gilmore to the Dallas Cowboys on Tuesday, a league source confirmed. the athlete. Here’s what you need to know:

• The Cowboys surrender their 2023 compensatory fifth-round pick to Gilmour.
• Gilmore started 16 games for the Colts last season, and finished with 66 combined tackles (53 solo) and two interceptions. He is a five-time Pro Bowler and a two-time first team All-Pro.
• Dallas allowed 207.8 passing yards per game last season, eighth in the NFL.
• The Cowboys were 12-5 in 2022, as they fell in the Divisional Round to the San Francisco 49ers. The Colts (4-12) missed the postseason for the second year in a row.

the athleteInstant Analysis:

What do the Colts lose?

Since the end of the Colts, the shame of the move has been that Gilmour has been one of the team’s few bright spots in 2022 — he started 16 games, grabbed two interceptions, and had three last-second wins with a pass breakup (against Kansas City, Denver and Las Vegas). He’d heard a lot said after his release from Carolina—essentially that he finished as an elite cornerback—and Gilmour, even at 32, was determined to prove he was still one of the best players in the game. He did it in Indy, and has been a consistent force in the secondary despite the chaotic 4-12-1 season. – Kiefer

Rebuild marks in Indy

With the trade, the Colts net a fifth-round pick and add about $9.9. million in the salary cap space. This indicates that a rebuild is underway, and I wouldn’t be surprised if a few more veterans are traded or released in the coming days. The Colts released quarterback Matt Ryan on Friday, according to a league source, before a large portion of his 2023 salary begins. Center Ryan Kelly could be one more, a move that would remove nearly $8 million more. What does the team plan to do with this financial flexibility? This is what we have to wait and find out. – Kiefer

Why choose Dallas Gilmore?

From every possible perspective, this is a very good gamble for a cowboy. Gilmour may not be quite what he was when he was the best cornerback in the league, but he’s still plenty effective. Dallas saw that firsthand on their visit to town in December when they played a great game. He comes to town hoping to help a cowboy high school that has no third corner in San Francisco. They’ve played Trayvon Diggs, Daron Bland, and four insiders safe, including their fourth play safety on senior cornerback Israel Mukwamo.

This certainly isn’t a solid endorsement of the big investment in the position in the 2021 draft with Kelvin Joseph and Nahshon Wright in the second and third rounds, but they couldn’t get a foothold of confidence from the coaching staff and front office in December. She was soon shunned by flyers on Mackensie Alexander and Xavier Rhodes.

Ironically Rhodes was traded to Gilmore at Indianapolis in 2022 and now Gilmore is following him to Dallas with one year left on his deal where he should fit in nicely with what Dan Quinn likes to do with his corners and combine him with Diggs there won’t be many NFC teams that can match 1-2 hits to those corners on a Cowboys defense that was already pretty salty all over. This is a very reasonable idea for the team at the cost of a compensatory fifth-round pick. I think that will provide some positivity at the moment in Dallas. – Sturm

What do cowboys earn?

Many mock drafts expected the Cowboys to take a corner with their first round pick, 26th overall. Obviously, this is not a great need now. Anthony Brown is an unrestricted free agent. Jordan Lewis has one year left on his deal.

Gilmour will be 33 this coming season, so the start of his career will likely be behind him. But he made 16 appearances last season for the Colts, intercepting two passes and defending 11 more times. He also had a career-high 66 tackles. The Cowboys would love to perform like Gilmour did in 2019, when he had career highs with six interceptions and 20 passes defended. But they are happy to repeat last year’s performance. Combine that with a playmaking secondary that includes Diggs, Bland, Donovan Wilson, Jayron Kearse, Malik Hooker, and a pass rush led by Micah Parsons and DeMarcus Lawrence, the Cowboys should continue to have one of the best defenses in the NFL in 2023. – Machuta

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(Photo: Justin Casterline/Getty Images)