How Christian Gonzalez Fits into Patriots Defense: 'Perfect Fit'?
The New England Patriots are days from hosting their rookie minicamp, providing the first look at their NFL Draft class. The headliner of their 12 selections will be Oregon's cornerback Christian Gonzalez.
The ex-Duck was arguably the best corner prospect in the class, and the Patriots didn't even move up for him. Instead, they traded down from No. 14 to No. 17 overall with the Pittsburgh Steelers to land Gonzalez. The talented cornerback gets ESPN's label of a "perfect fit" for New England's defense.
"The Patriots major in single-high coverages, playing over 60 percent of coverage snaps with a post safety in the deep middle of the field last season," ESPN writes. "That's an easy fit for Gonzalez, who has the coverage traits and speed to match in man-on-man and the fluid lower-body flexibility to play from an off-position in three-deep zone.
"Gonzalez can flip the hips and use his great backfield vision to get a jump on the ball here. His 6-foot-1 frame will also show up when he is asked to jam and sink in the Patriots' two-deep shells."
Gonzalez's height fits the mold of Bill Belichick's defense at the cornerback position. The Patriots featured three guys on the outside at cornerback a season ago - Jonathan Jones, Marcus Jones, and Jack Jones - all under six-foot.
Writes ESPN:
"It's just a really good fit -- at a position of need -- with Gonzalez in New England. He had four interceptions last season and should help in the department as a rookie."
Gonzalez's physical traits also earned him the fourth overall ranking among cornerbacks for "athleticism score" by NFL.com. The Patriots are also getting a playmaker, as Gonzalez last season recorded four interceptions with 118 return yards and seven passes defended.
After the Patriots finished 16th in passing yards allowed per game a season ago, Gonzalez could be one of the final pieces to getting the secondary back to where it was during their Super Bowl days.
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