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Stephon Gilmore Continues To Render Opposing No. 1 Receivers Useless

By Matthew Geagan, CBS Boston

BOSTON (CBS) -- Opposing wide receivers are having a miserable time going against Patriots cornerback Stephon Gilmore this season. He rendered another No. 1 receiver useless on Sunday, shutting down Cowboys top option Amari Cooper in New England's 13-9 victory at Gillette Stadium.

It was the kind of performance Patriots fans have come to expect out of the best cornerback in the NFL. Gilmore locked down Cooper throughout Sunday's win, keeping Dak Prescott's top option from making a catch. It's the first time Cooper hasn't made a reception in his 20 career games with the Cowboys.

Gilmore picked off the first pass that Cooper saw on Sunday, a second-quarter interception that led to a Patriots field goal. With that, the corner actually finished with more catches than Cooper on Sunday.

"It was fun. I was just trying to get my hands on him every snap," Gilmore told reporters after the game.

Gilmore's defense was so smothering that Prescott only went Cooper's way twice during Sunday's contest. There was no point in trying, because Gilmore was all over the receiver. Cooper did make a catch in the third quarter, but it was negated by a holding penalty. Then, late in the game with the Cowboys facing a fourth-and-11 with 1:44 left, the receiver made what was initially ruled a diving 20-yard catch over the middle, but that was later overturned after a replay review. Cooper finished his rainy afternoon in Foxboro with a giant goose egg in the box score.

While locking down Cooper was impressive, Gilmore also saved the game for New England with just over six minutes left in the fourth quarter. Down 13-6, Dallas was driving, facing a second-and-7 at the New England 11. Prescott scrambled to buy some extra time to allow tight end Jason Witten get free from safety Patrick Chung, and fired a low pass into the end zone. The ball was destined for Witten's giant hands, until Gilmore broke off from Cooper (whom he shut down along the sideline) and lunged for Prescott's pass, breaking it up in the end zone.

It was another great play from the best corner in the game, though he wasn't very happy with himself after the win.

"I was on Cooper and saw Dak looking at [Witten]. I came off my guy and tried to make a play. It was a tough catch, but I should have made that catch too," said Gilmore.

His head coach, however, had plenty of praise to send Gilmore's way.

"This was another great effort by Steph," said Bill Belichick. "You know, he just works and prepares so hard for his matchups every week, and takes those as such a personal challenge. Obviously, this is a very good group of receivers, and a great quarterback and a great offensive line. But yeah, Steph's as professional as they come. He knows the opponents inside-out, and his matchups, and the overall scheme and how to best play based on what our call is and what the situation is and so forth. He does a great job of that, so certainly a good day for him.

Gilmore is now up to four interceptions on the season, and he leads the Patriots with 13 passed defended. That alone is a good enough resume for All Pro honors, but then you look at the names Gilmore has taken along the way. Cooper joins the likes of JuJu Smith-Schuster, Odell Beckham Jr. and Robby Anderson as top receivers who had a miserable day going against Gilmore.

Up next is a Sunday night road date with the Houston Texans, who boast one of the most talented wide receiver duos in DeAndre Hopkins and Will Fuller V. Gilmore will have his plate full next week, no matter which receiver Bill Belichick tasks him with shutting down.

But as we've seen throughout the season, and since Gilmore signed his big-money deal with the Patriots in 2017, he's more than up to any challenge thrown his way.

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