Few players came into this year’s Patriots training camp with more hype than rookie cornerback Christian Gonzalez. Gonzalez was tabbed as the top cornerback in this past draft class, and was viewed by many as a lock to be a top-10 pick. Naturally, it was a surprise when he fell to the Patriots at 17th overall.
With that surprise came high expectations. First round picks are expected to be instant starters, but a player like Gonzalez is usually expected to be an impact player right away.
That brings us to training camp, and Gonzalez’s first real reps against NFL competition. How would the All-Conference cornerback adjust to professional wide receivers?
New England Patriots cornerback Christian Gonzalez (50) sprints during 2023 training camp in Foxboro. (Eric Canha-USA TODAY Sports)
It turns out, pretty well. Gonzalez has certainly held his own highlighted by his performance on Friday. The 21-year-old looked like the best player on the field, winning competitive reps against most of the Patriots’ top receivers during 11-on-11s.
He had two pass breakups, while on most of his snaps his tight coverage prevented targets all together. Overall, it was Gonzalez flashing the skillset – highlighted by his quickness, agility, and explosiveness – and potential that had him so highly regarded by so many in the spring.
That being said, it’s now on Gonzalez to replicate that kind of performance moving forwards. A big part of that will be adjusting to the NFL talent curve. For any rookie – from first overall picks to UDFAs – there are nuances that come with the NFL game that aren’t found in college that take time to adjust to.
With a player like Gonzalez the question isn’t can he adjust or not – he can – but how long that will take. Months? Weeks? Or will he hit his stride before the regular season starts?
