The Patriots are set to release Stephon Gilmore, but the move has yet to hit the league’s official transactions wire. Meanwhile, sources say the Patriots have leaked the news in a last-ditch effort to trade the cornerback (Twitter link via Albert Breer of The MMQB).

[RELATED: Patriots To Cut Stephon Gilmore]

“I am grateful to Stephon Gilmore for his significant contributions to the team,” head coach Bill Belichick said in a team-issued statement. “It was a privilege and pleasure to coach Steph, I appreciate him for the true professional and class act that he is and wish him all the best in the future. Following discussions over a long period of time, we mutually agreed to part ways today.”

Belichick’s statement indicates that it’s a done deal. However, as of this writing, Gilmore has not been formally released.

From a football-only perspective, tons of teams would love to add Gilmore. However, no one was willing to meet the Patriots’ asking price, given Gilmore’s desire for a new contract. From here, interested clubs might be inclined to wait until 4pm ET/3pm CT. Then again, they could also circumvent the bidding process by talking to Gilmore’s camp and sending some future draft compensation to New England.

The Patriots have yet to resolve Stephon Gilmore‘s contract issue, and they are now set to be without the All-Pro cornerback for at least six games. Gilmore will reside on New England’s reserve/PUP list to start the season.

While it would stand to reason the Pats will be eager to have Gilmore back in their starting lineup when he recovers from his troublesome quadriceps injury, there may not be a future here beyond 2021. On that note, the team is not believed to have ruled out a Gilmore trade, Dan Graziano of ESPN.com notes.

This topic surfaced in March but did not gain much steam. After a report indicated the Pats were open to trading Gilmore, news emerged shortly after stating that the team was not actively shopping the 10th-year corner. Gilmore trade rumors have come up on a few occasions over the past year and change. The Pats discussed Gilmore with other teams during the 2020 draft and set a high price for the accomplished defender at last year’s trade deadline. Nothing came to pass, and Gilmore remains attached to his 2017 contract. He is set to make just $7MM in base salary this season, the final year of the deal.

Optimism existed on a revised Gilmore deal last month, Graziano adds, but nothing has changed contractually. The 30-year-old corner did not attend minicamp or practice during training camp. Still, a Pats team with more realistic playoff aspirations this year would stand to benefit from a healthy Gilmore, who would lead their cornerback corps. It would seemingly take a strong offer for the Pats to give up the prospect of Gilmore leading a group that houses J.C. Jackson, Jonathan Jones and Jalen Mills.

Of course, the Pats have an extensive history of parting with veteran contributors just before Week 1 or early in the season. The team made Lawyer Milloy a surprise cut in September 2003, traded Richard Seymour to the Raiders in September 2009, traded Randy Moss to the Vikings in October 2010 and dealt Logan Mankins to the Buccaneers in September 2014.

A Gilmore trade could bring back an attractive haul for the Pats, even if a first-round pick is unrealistic — especially with Gilmore not being available until Week 7 at the earliest. A team that acquires the former Defensive Player of the Year would do so likely knowing a big-ticket extension will need to follow, unless said team is fine with a rental scenario. Gilmore’s camp was not expecting Jalen Ramsey-level money from the Pats, but the sides having not agreed to anything nearly two months after Gilmore went public about his dissatisfaction may extend this uncertain situation into the regular season.

Stephon Gilmore continues to push for a new contract, but the standoff won’t keep him away from Foxborough. Jeff Howe of The Athletic reports (via Twitter) that the former Defensive Player of the Year reported to Gillette Stadium today. However, the veteran cornerback will temporarily sit on the PUP list.

We heard recently that the Patriots hadn’t made any progress on an extension with Gilmore. The cornerback previously hinted that he’d be satisfied with a simply bump in pay for the 2020 campaign, and some pundits believe the organization could find a compromise by offering Gilmore an incentive-based increase (similar to what they previously did with the likes of Tom Brady and Rob Gronkowski). Gilmore is presumably waiting for an offer that contains more guaranteed money, explaining why he skipped the team’s entire offseason program, including mandatory minicamp.

Gilmore, 31 in September, is set to make just $7MM in base salary this season after a chunk of his money was advanced in 2020. In terms of average annual value ($13MM), the 2019 Defensive Player of the Year ranks as just the 13th highest-paid cornerback in the NFL. At the time of signing, his five-year, $65MM deal was plenty. Since then, the former Bills first-round pick has performed as one of the game’s premier cover men.

There’s mutual interest in a longer arrangement, since Gilmore was a first-team All-Pro in 2018 and ’19.However, questions persist about last year’s torn quad. Either way, barring an unexpected development, it sounds like the defensive back will at least spend the 2021 season with New England.

Gilmore was one of a handful of Patriots players to land on PUP today. He’ll be joined by defensive tackle Byron Cowart, linebacker Terez Hall, tight end Dalton Keene, linebacker Brandon King, wideout Devin Smith, quarterback Jarrett Stidham, and linebacker Chase Winovich.

The Patriots and cornerback Stephon Gilmore haven’t made any recent progress on their extension talks, according to Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated. Gilmore told reporters recently that he’s not happy with his current contract, but also said that he wouldn’t demand a trade.

“I just want what I’m worth, however that plays out,” Gilmore said earlier this month. “Every player should be paid what they’re worth. That’s just how it is. Hopefully we can find some common ground and get it situated. I just know what I bring to the table and my style of play.”

Gilmore, 31 in September, is set to make just $7MM in base salary this season after a chunk of his money was advanced in 2020. In terms of average annual value ($13MM), the 2019 Defensive Player of the Year ranks as just the 13th highest-paid cornerback in the NFL. At the time of signing, his five-year, $65MM deal was plenty. Since then, the former Bills first-round pick has performed as one of the game’s premier cover men.

There’s mutual interest in a longer arrangement, since Gilmore was a first-team All-Pro in 2018 and ’19.However, questions persist about last year’s torn quad. Some believe that they can smooth things out with incentives for the current year, like they’ve done in the past for Rob Gronkowski and Tom Brady. But, Breer hears that there hasn’t been much progress on that front either.

Stephon Gilmore‘s contract continues to be a midsummer NFL talking point. The All-Pro did not attend the Patriots’ mandatory minicamp and is going into the final year of a contract several less accomplished cornerbacks have since surpassed.

The 10th-year veteran addressed some issues regarding his status with the Patriots and health going into training camp Friday.

“I just want what I’m worth, however that plays out,” Gilmore said in a text to veteran NFL reporter Josina Anderson (Twitter links). “Every player should be paid what they’re worth. That’s just how it is. Hopefully we can find some common ground & get it situated. I just know what I bring to the table & my style of play.”

Gilmore, 31 in September, is due just a $7MM base salary this season. This amount was set to be higher, but the Patriots moved money to give the 2019 Defensive Player of the Year a raise in 2020. In terms of average annual value, Gilmore’s $13MM mark has dropped to 13th. The Pats gave Gilmore a five-year, $65MM accord in 2017. The former Bills first-round pick has since become one of the game’s premier cover men, earning first-team All-Pro recognition in 2018 and ’19.

The Pats are not expected to do a new deal with Gilmore ahead of camp, however. The more likely scenario will be adding incentives for him to reach in 2021, similar to how the team played it with Tom Brady and Rob Gronkowski in 2018. Gilmore is coming off a down season, playing in just 11 games due to contracting COVID-19 suffering a torn quadriceps. On the latter front, Gilmore said he has been running “a lot” since his quad surgery, though he stopped short of confirming he would be 100% by camp (Twitter link via Anderson).

Even though this situation remains unresolved, Gilmore confirmed to Anderson he is not planning to push for a trade. This supports previous reports indicating this situation is not contentious at this point.