WATCH: Patriots Rookie CB Christian Gonzalez Makes 'Fluid' First Impression
FOXBORO — As the late, great Will Rogers once said, “You never get a second chance to make a first impression.”
However, sometimes one chance is all you need — and such appears to be the case for New England Patriots rookie cornerback Christian Gonzalez.
Originally projected as a possible top-five talent, Gonzalez surprisingly fell to the Pats at pick No. 17. Accordingly, his selection is being labeled as one of the biggest potential ‘steals’ in this season’s Draft class.
Gonzalez has the chance to become the Patriots most versatile, yet athletic corner since the departure of former All-Pro Stephon Gilmore. The former Oregon Duck is well-sized at 6-1, 197 pounds, with the height and length to match up against opposing teams’ top receivers on the outside — a point not lost on Patriots inside linebackers coach, and defensive play caller, Jerod Mayo.
“Usually you see long guys like that, they have a hard time changing direction … This guy is pretty fluid,” Mayo said.“If you look at the rest of our corners they’re pretty short, so it’s good to add some size there. This guy is tall, very fluid as an athlete. He can do a bunch of different things on the field.”
Mayo was clearly pleased with his initial read on Gonzalez during rookie minicamp, which concluded on May 14. Despite the three-day training period being closed to the media, Patriots fans were also treated on Wednesday to their first look at their assumedly new star cornerback on the Pats practice fields.
In addition to the above demonstration, Gonzalez’s athleticism was also on full display during his pre-draft testing period, registering a 9.95 Relative Athletic Score — of which his 41.5 vertical jump and 4.38 40–yard dash were key components. In fact, his blend of both size and flexible movement is already endearing himself to Patriots coaches in the defensive backfield.
“Big guy, moves really well,” cornerbacks coach Mike Pellegrino added. “Good speed, size is good. You don’t really see the movement skills with the size, so that is pretty rare.”
On the field, Gonzalez is arguably at his best in man coverage, while possessing an ability to maintain eye contact with the quarterback in zone. Still, his value is as much about statistical competence as it is raw athleticism. He finished his 2022 season with the Ducks having compiled 35 tackles, four interceptions and four passes-defensed. He was also one of college football’s most durable players, starting all 12 games in which he played for Oregon in 2022 — as well as each of the 18 for which he suited up for Colorado from 2020-21.
Conversely, New England’s secondary had to endure a number of injuries to key players throughout the year, especially at cornerback. With 2022 starter Jalen Mills having missed seven games due to a groin injury, Jonathan Jones inherited the duties as the team’s top perimeter corner. The former slot specialist tied for the team lead in interceptions with four. Unsurprisingly, Jones appears to be welcoming Gonzalez’s versatility and durability to the positional group.
“We need it. We need help, we need all the help we can get,” Jones told reporters on Tuesday. “We’ve had a lot of transition in that position over the last few years and just we need it. We need a little bit of help.”
Ultimately, Gonzalez has all of the tools to provide more than adequate help to New England’s defense. Both Jack Jones and Marcus Jones showed enough prowess as 2022 rookies to indicate a bright future at the position, each grabbing a pair of interceptions respectively. Myles Bryant, who was retained as a restricted free agent, played in all 17 games, taking 61 percent of the Pats defensive snaps, primarily out of the slot.
The Patriots adding Gonzalez’s lockdown abilities to the perimeter of their defensive backfield has the chance to instantly transform a promising, young unit into a potentially top-flight secondary in 2023.
In the process it also seems to be fulfilling both the wants and needs of the organization, as well as the fanbase.
Not bad for a first impression.
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