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Christian Gonzalez
American football player (born 2002) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Christian Gonzalez (born June 28, 2002) is an American professional football cornerback for the New England Patriots of the National Football League (NFL). He played two seasons of college football for the Colorado Buffaloes and one with the Oregon Ducks prior to being selected by the Patriots in the first round of the 2023 NFL draft. He is the younger brother of Colombian-American hurdler Melissa Gonzalez.
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Early life
Gonzalez was born on June 28, 2002, in Carrollton, Texas. He grew up in The Colony, Texas, and attended The Colony High School, where he was rated a four-star prospect as a cornerback and wide receiver. Gonzalez initially committed to play college football at Purdue University before enrolling at the University of Colorado.[1][2][3]
College career
Gonzalez would become a full-time cornerback upon joining the Colorado Buffaloes football team in 2020. He started every game as a freshman, making 25 tackles with five pass deflections.[4][5] As a sophomore, he had 53 tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss, and five passes broken up.[6]
Gonzalez transferred to the University of Oregon in 2022 to play for the Oregon Ducks.[7] He was named first-team All-Pac-12 after recording 45 tackles, 7 pass breakups, and 3 interceptions.[8] After the season, Gonzalez decided to forgo his remaining two years of eligibility and enter the 2023 NFL draft.[9]
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Professional career
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Pre-draft
Dane Brugler of the Athletic had him ranked as the top cornerback available in the draft.[10] Pro Football Focus listed Gonzalez as the second best cornerback prospect (12th overall) on their big board.[11] NFL analyst Bucky Brooks and ESPN had Gonzalez ranked as the second best cornerback in the draft.[12] He was also ranked second amongst all cornerback prospects by NFL.com media analyst Daniel Jeremiah and ESPN analyst Mel Kiper Jr.[10] He was also ranked as the second best cornerback prospect by Michael Renner of Pro Football Focus. Scouts Inc. had Gonzalez listed as the second best cornerback (eighth overall) on their big board.[13] NFL draft analyst Lance Zierlein projected Gonzalez to be selected in the first round of the 2023 NFL Draft.
2023
The New England Patriots selected Gonzalez in the first round (17th overall) of the 2023 NFL draft.[15] He was the third cornerback drafted and the first of two cornerbacks selected by the Patriots in 2023, along with seventh-round (252nd overall) Alex Austin.
On July 23, 2023, the New England Patriots signed Gonzalez to a fully-guaranteed four–year, $15.10 million rookie contract that includes an initial signing bonus of $7.98 million.[16]
Throughout training camp, he competed to earn a role as the No. 2 starting cornerback against Marcus Jones, Myles Bryant, and Shaun Wade. Head coach Bill Belichick named him a starting cornerback to begin the season, alongside No. 1 starting cornerback Jonathan Jones.[17]
On September 10, 2023, Gonzalez made his professional regular season debut and earned his first career start in the New England Patriots' home-opener against the Philadelphia Eagles and set a season-high with seven combined tackles (five solo), broke up a pass, and had his first career sack on Jalen Hurts for an eight–yard loss during a 20–25 loss.[18] In week 2, he set a season-high with six solo tackles, made one pass deflection, and made his first career interception on a pass attempt thrown by Tua Tagovailoa to wide receiver Tyreek Hill during a 17–24 loss against the Miami Dolphins.[19] He was awarded with his first NFL award, receiving Defensive Rookie of the Month for September.[20] In week 4, Gonzalez recorded one solo tackle before exiting during the second quarter of a 3–38 loss at the Dallas Cowboys after suffering a torn labrum. On October 7, 2023, the Patriots officially placed Gonzalez was on injured reserve for the remainder of the season after it was confirmed that he had suffered a dislocated shoulder and torn labrum, with both requiring surgery.[21] He finished his rookie season with a total of 17 combined tackles (14 solo), three pass deflections, one sack, and an interception in four games and four starts.[22] He received an overall grade of 80.8 from Pro Football Focus in 2023.[23]
2024
On January 12, 2024, the New England Patriots promoted inside linebackers coach Jerod Mayo to head coach following the departure of Bill Belichick.[24] Defensive coordinator DeMarcus Covington chose to retain Gonzalez and Jonathan Jones as the starting cornerbacks to begin the season.
On October 6, 2024, Gonzalez tied his season-high of six solo tackles, made two pass deflections, and intercepted a pass by Tyler Huntley to wide receiver Odell Beckham during a 10–15 loss to the Miami Dolphins. On November 24, 2024, Gonzalez made three combined tackles (two solo), one pass deflection, and returned a fumble recovery 63–yards to score his first career touchdown during a 15–34 loss at the Miami Dolphins. He scored his touchdown after recovering a fumble by running back Jaylen Wright that was caused by linebacker Marte Mapu in the fourth quarter.[25] In week 13, he tied his season-high of six combined tackles (five solo), made two pass deflections, and set a career-high with his second interception of the season on a pass by Anthony Richardson to wide receiver Alec Pierce during a 24–25 loss to the Indianapolis Colts. On December 28, 2024, Gonzalez recorded one solo tackle before exiting early in the second quarter of a 7–40 loss against the Los Angeles Chargers after sustaining a concussion. He was subsequently inactive for the Patriots' 23–16 victory against the Buffalo Bills in week 18.[26] He finished the season with 59 combined tackles (50 solo), 11 pass deflections, two interceptions, one fumble recovery, and a touchdown in 16 games and 16 starts. He received an overall grade of 76.0 from Pro Football Focus, which ranked 21st amongst 222 qualifying cornerbacks in 2024.[27]
2025
On July 29, 2025, Gonzalez suffered a hamstring injury during the second week of training camp.[28]
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NFL career statistics
Regular season
Personal life
Gonzalez was born to a Colombian family. His father, Hector, is 6-foot-9 and played college basketball at the University of Texas at El Paso before playing semiprofessionally in Colombia. He has three sisters, Melissa, Samantha, and Lily. Melissa (University of Texas) and Samantha (University of Miami) were two-time All-Americans in track and field, with Melissa representing Colombia in international events.[29] Gonzalez is the brother-in-law of NFL coach and former quarterback David Blough, who is married to Melissa.[3]
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References
External links
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