Soft spoken Patriots cornerback Stephon Gilmore opened some eyes on Wednesday when he told a local radio station that part of the reason the Jaguars All-Pro coverman Jalen Ramsey talks so much trash is that he plays in a zone scheme that affords him extra energy to do so.
"That's not my style, but I find a lot of guys that talk are mostly zone guys so they have a lot of energy to do that," Gilmore told 98.5 the Sports Hub.
It didn't seem that Gilmore made the comments with the intent to ignite any sort of war of words with the outspoken Ramsey, but it's no surprise that the star Jacksonville defender had a response on Thursday.
The Boston Globe passes along Ramsey’s comments, in part saying Gilmore’s criticism of him was “lame, corny.” The Globe says that newcomer John Simon has picked up the Patriots defense quickly. The Globe breaks down how the Patriots are preparing for the Chiefs big-play offense. The Globe has a Patriots roundtable looking at Sunday’s game against the undefeated Kansas City squad.
The Boston Herald notes that Julian Edelman made it quite clear that his focus this week is on the Chiefs and really nothing else. The Herald has word of Rob Gronkowski stopping by a Stop and Shop this week to surprise some Dana-Farber pediatric patients and their families at an event. The Herald says that Devin McCourty and the New England defense must find a way to deal with the Chiefs speed this week. The Herald also has Ramsey’s comments.
The Providence Journal observes that Chris Hogan missed practice on Thursday due to a thigh injury. The ProJo has Edelman saying Josh Gordon can be a really big part of the Patriots offense. The ProJo also says Edelman is working to build his confidence. The ProJo has the Ramsey “corny” comments.
ESPNBoston.com passes along Edelman lauding Gordon.
WEEI.com says that Edelman likes what he sees from Gordon. WEEI.com notes Ramsey calling Gilmore’s critique “lame” and notes Hogan missing practice to his thigh issue.
NBC Sports Boston declares that even though sacks have been hard to come by, the Patriots defense is still ‘impacting” opposing quarterbacks. NBC Sports Boston looks at the idea that linebacker Jamie Collins might be able to rejoin the Patriots in a trade. NBC Sports Boston also has the Gilmore vs. Ramsey verbal battle.
MassLive.com wonders if the Patriots should try to play keep-away against the Chiefs and their suspect defense.
