PFF Grades the Colts and Cowboys Gilmore Trade

The Indianapolis Colts were quiet on the first day of the contact period for free agency this week, but they made a big move with a trade of starting cornerback Stephon Gilmore to the Dallas Cowboys.

On the surface the move appeared to be about the Colts clearing salary-cap room than the fifth-round pick they got from the Cowboys.

Pro Football Focus (PFF) graded the trade a 'B' for the Colts and an 'A' for the Cowboys.

Gilmore has been one of the best cornerbacks in football since moving to the New England Patriots in 2017, and he reconfirmed that with an impressive showing for the Indianapolis Colts in 2022 after playing just 304 snaps with the Carolina Panthers in 2021. Since 2017, his 92.8 PFF coverage grade is the highest among all cornerbacks to play at least 1,000 snaps.

Gilmore is owed $8.96 million combined in salary and a roster bonus due later in the offseason and can earn up to $1.02 million in per-game roster bonuses. This is great value for Dallas, and serving as a veteran mentor to the still-ascending Trevon Diggs is an added bonus. -- PFF.com

After the move the Colts had just over $17-million in salary-cap space according to Spotrac. Gilmore still counts $2-million against the cap (dead cap), and the Colts doubled that number when they released Matt Ryan on Tuesday night.

Indianapolis tapped into those funds on Tuesday when it was reported they were signing Samson Ebukam from the San Francisco 49ers. Ebukam counts just $5-million against the cap in 2023 according to Spotrac.

The addition of Ebukam could mean Yannick Ngakoue is on his way out of Indianapolis as a free agent.

As mentioned, the Colts have been relatively quiet to open the free-agency period, but with more than $20-million in available cap space and the No. 4 overall pick in the NFL Draft, don't expect that to last too long.