Bill Belichick nearly made ex-Patriots star Stephon Gilmore cry in front of team
Gilmore, 34, recalled a time when Belichick lashed out at him during a team meeting not long after the cornerback first arrived in New England in 2017.
'He killed me one day, bro. It was when I first got there,' the five-time Pro Bowler said during an appearance on The Money Down Podcast on Thursday. 'I was pressed down on the receiver. It was a bunch route. …And I got picked. Bro, he killed me the next meeting.
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3 Head coach Bill Belichick of the North Carolina Tar Heels coaches at Kenan Stadium on April 12, 2025 in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.
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'I almost cried, how he did me. I ain't going to lie to you. I went to the bathroom, like man, bro. I can tell you one thing: I ain't never got picked again after that.'
Gilmore, who wound up spending four years with the Patriots, was named to two All-Pro teams and took home Defensive Player of the Year honors for 2019 during his tenure there.
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3 Stephon Gilmore gestures during the first half against the Philadelphia Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field on November 17, 2019 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
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The South Carolina alum was also a member of New England's Super Bowl championship squad in 2018.
Despite Belichick's apparent outburst toward Gilmore, the cornerback has always talked highly of the legendary coach, calling him the 'greatest' he's ever been around while criticizing the portrayal of him in the 'Dynasty' docuseries, which aired on Apple TV+ last year.
'Just watched The Dynasty. Bill was the greatest coach I've ever been around. Don't let that fool you. I'll never forget we were a predominantly man team during the 2018 season all the way up to the Super Bowl. When we played the Rams we switched to Zone,' Gilmore posted on X then.
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3 Stephon Gilmore warms up before the game against the Las Vegas Raiders at Gillette Stadium on September 27, 2020 in Foxborough, Massachusetts.
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After spending this past season with the Vikings, Gilmore finds himself without a team in NFL free agency.
Gilmore has made clear, however, that he hopes to be on a team for the upcoming season.
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'I wanna play this year. It's just gotta be the right situation…I'm not just going to sign anywhere, it gotta be the right situation,' Gilmore said during the podcast. 'I still love the game. I still can contribute.
'It just gotta be the right place.'
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