Patriots’ Christian Gonzalez finishes fifth in NFL Comeback Player of the Year voting
Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow won the NFL Comeback Player of the Year award at last Thursday night’s NFL Honors award show, but New England Patriots cornerback Christian Gonzalez received recognition for his strong comeback season in 2024 as well.
Despite not winning the award, Gonzalez received 69 votes towards the honor, the fifth most among nominated players.
The Comeback Player award is given to a player that returned from a hardship of some sort and had a very strong return season. For Gonzalez, his hardship was a torn labrum in his shoulder that he suffered in Week 4 of 2023, which caused him to miss the remainder of the season.
In those first four games of his rookie year, Gonzalez showed a lot of promise. He picked up where he left off in the 2024 campaign, playing in 16 games with 11 pass breakups, 59 total tackles, and two interceptions. He also recovered a fumble and returned it for a touchdown against the Dolphins in Week 12. Beyond the numbers, Gonzalez was often paired up against opponents’ top receivers and did a strong job at limiting them.
Through his two years in the league, Gonzalez has progressed nicely. The votes for Comeback Player of the Year should reassure Patriots fans, because it shows that he was unaffected by the injury. In year three, Gonzalez will be expected to take another step forward has not just one of the top defensive players for the Patriots, but one of the top defensive players in the NFL.
Luke Graham is a digital sports content co-op for 98.5 the Sports Hub. He is currently a sophomore at Northeastern University studying communications and media studies. Follow him on X @LukeGraham05.
