Stephon Gilmore explained why he wanted No. 24 from Cyrus Jones
No. 24 will belong to a new member of the New England Patriots next season.
The Patriots announced the jersey numbers for the newest members of their squad this week, and you may have noticed Stephon Gilmore’s uniform is sporting No. 24. The digits previously belonged to fellow cornerback Cyrus Jones, who was drafted by New England in 2016.
In a press conference in Foxborough on Tuesday, Gilmore explained why the number was so important to him.
Patriots CB Stephon Gilmore on why No. 24 has been his favorite over the years. pic.twitter.com/9efETTtyGF
— Mike Reiss (@MikeReiss) May 11, 2017
“I just always wanted the number,” he said. “That’s what number a lot of guys I looked up to wore, so that’s one number that I always loved.”
He specifically mentioned the influence of two former Patriots, Ty Law and Darrelle Revis, calling Revis a player who did “great things in the league.”
A few of his favorite players from his home state of South Carolina also donned No. 24, namely Johnathan Joseph of the Houston Texans and former Philadelphia Eagles cornerback Sheldon Brown.
According to Gilmore, Jones — who will be wearing No. 41 next season — had no issues with giving up his former number.
“I just asked him ‘can we do it?’ and we just came to the conclusion that we were going to switch,” he told reporters. “He was genuine enough to do it, so I was happy for it.”
