The New England Patriots are back atop the AFC East, and after extending Marcus Jones, one message is clear: this defense will be built around elite cornerback play — and Christian Gonzalez should be next in line.
Following Sunday’s 32-13 victory against the Cleveland Browns, the team decided to invest in its secondary. According to ESPN’s Mike Reiss, the Patriots agreed to a long-term extension with four-year veteran Marcus Jones.
This season, Jones has emerged as the team’s number one slot cornerback, as well as contributed in a big way as the team’s punt returner. With Jones now locked in, attention naturally shifts to the outside — where Christian Gonzalez is quickly becoming one of the NFL’s best.
Christian Gonzalez Extension Should Be Patriots' Next Move After Marcus Jones Deal
Gonzalez, 23, was drafted by the Patriots with the 17th overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft and has emerged as one of the league’s premier corners, being named a 2024 second-team All-Pro.
What makes Gonzalez so good is his ability to lock down the opposing team’s top receiver. In Sunday’s 32–13 win over the Browns, Gonzalez held top receiver Jerry Jeudy to zero catches on two targets. After the game, he spoke about his performance:
“That’s what I want to do, and any corner wants to do. You want to take away who they want to go to. Today, it was Jeudy that was my assignment…”
Sunday’s performance was no fluke for Gonzalez. So far this season, his 73.1 PFF coverage grade ranks in the top 15 amongst cornerbacks.
What makes New England fans so excited about Gonzalez is that he is only in his third NFL season and has plenty of room to grow, even after making the All-Pro team in his second season.
Gonzalez, who is still on his four-year, $15 million rookie contract, is eligible for a contract extension after this season and deserves a massive pay raise. Looking at the cornerback market, New York Jets cornerback Sauce Gardner and Houston Texans cornerback Derek Stingley are making over $30 million per year.
Given that Gonzalez is younger than both, his next contract could set a new watermark for the position. However, it's a good problem to have when a young stud plays so well they're worthy of resetting the market, and New England's healthy cap situation eliminates any worries about affording the gargantuan cost.
The Patriots have a storied history of lockdown CBs, and locking down Gonzalez long-term would ensure a backbone of this contender won't be going anywhere anytime soon,.