According to Ian Rapoport, the Panthers are expected to open CB Stephon Gilmore‘s practice window this week as the first step in bringing him off the PUP list.
That would theoretically mean Gilmore could play as soon as Week 7 against the Giants but Rapoport said the team will be patient. Gilmore hasn’t practiced in months due to a quad injury from last year and is learning a new system.
Carolina sent a 2023 sixth-round pick to New England in exchange for Gilmore, who grew up in nearby Rock Hill, South Carolina and went to college at South Carolina.
The Panthers inherit the prorated remainder of Gilmore’s $7 million base salary, which is just under $6 million. The two sides have an understanding that Gilmore will play out the final year of his deal, for now.
Gilmore, 31, was taken with the No. 10 overall pick by the Bills back in 2012. He played out his rookie contract, but the Bills elected to pick up his fifth-year option for the 2016 season.
Gilmore would later depart for a five-year, $65 million contract that includes $31 million guaranteed with the Patriots. He stood to make a base salary of $7 million in 2021 when he was traded to the Panthers for a future sixth.
In 2020, Gilmore appeared in 11 games for the Patriots and recorded 37 tackles, one interception, a forced fumble and three passes defended.
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