Bill Belichick had never had a CB prospect quite like Christian Gonzalez

Henry McKenna

AFC East Reporter

At the combine in 2020, a New England Patriots scout told me that Bill Belichick had planned to leave the combine on Saturday, but when he realized the cornerbacks were doing an on-field workout on Sunday, the greatest coach of all time decided to put off his travel plans — a road trip from Pro Day to Pro Day — and stick around for the final day in Indianapolis.

Clear Belichick’s schedule! The coach can’t miss these workouts.

“That man loves his cornerbacks,” the scout said.

And, of course, the Patriots didn’t even draft a cornerback that year.

During his career with New England, Belichick has spent six second-round picks on the position. (One every three or four years.) The Patriots coach also spent big money on cornerback Stephon Gilmore in free agency and took a risk on Darrelle Revis with a trade. But he doesn’t often take cornerbacks with high draft picks, and perhaps because he is so good at developing them in later rounds (Asante Samuel) and undrafted free agency (Malcolm Butler, J.C. Jackson, Jon Jones).

And yet Belichick took former Oregon cornerback Christian Gonzalez with the 17th overall pick, the team’s second-highest selection since 2008.

Gonzalez is a one-of-a-kind prospect, even for a coach like Belichick with a deep understanding of the position. Gonzalez has some outlier traits on film and with his testing numbers that make him simply different from the corners Belichick has drafted in years past. Let’s start with the good elements of Gonzalez’s profile.

The former Oregon Ducks standout is arguably the best athlete in the entire 2023 NFL Draft. He is at the top end of every cornerback measurement. He’s 6-foot-1 and 197 pounds. He ran a 4.38-second 40-yard dash at the combine with a 1.54-second 10-yard split. His vertical leap is 41.5 inches and his broad jump is 11-feet-1-inch.

Oregon Ducks cornerback Christian Gonzalez highlights

If you’re one of those who can contextualize those sorts of measurements, your jaw just hit the floor. For those that are unfamiliar with all of those measurements, you’re beginning to think you should stop reading. So let me keep you around with another point of context for his athleticism.

The rookie is a better athlete than Devin McCourty, who was once a cornerback prospect. Gonzalez is even a better prospect than cornerback Terrance Wheatley, a draft bust who was a sensational athlete. Using the Relative Athletic Score, Gonzalez is the best athlete Belichick has drafted in the third round or higher (acknowledging that we don’t have data on some of his older picks). Gonzalez also blows undrafted cornerbacks J.C. Jackson and Malcolm Butler out of the water, for those that are curious. And yes, Gonzalez is a better athlete than Gilmore.

There was really just one former Patriots cornerback whose athleticism could compare: Revis.

Gonzalez’s film makes it clear he’s not just a track star. But there are some issues with his game. NBC Sports Boston’s Phil Perry wrote all about Gonzalez’s challenges as a tackler, the main concern for evaluators around the NFL.

That’s the second part of what makes Gonzalez unlike any prospect Belichick has drafted. Yes, he’s a sensational athlete. But the tackling blind spot is also an outlier for the Patriots coach, who has long made a point of adding defensive backs who aren’t a liability in the run game.

When asked a double-barrel question about Gonzalez’s ball skills and tackling abilities, Patriots director of player personnel Matt Groh completely omitted a comment about the tackling.

“A couple of [interceptions] against Colorado, one against Oregon State. Some impressive plays,” Groh said after Round 1. “You saw his ability to catch the ball at the combine. So feel pretty good about Christian and being able to bring him in.

Even though Groh remains optimistic about Gonzalez’s ball skills, the prospect isn’t truly a ballhawk. He has yet to anticipate passes or instinctively gravitate toward the ball.

Clearly, Belichick thinks Gonzalez can grow into those parts of his game. The rookie cornerback has the height, weight and speed to hit hard — and close on the football for a pick. Every prospect has clear weaknesses that require coaching.

Even with those weaknesses, Gonzalez is just different. And not just in the way that every person is unique. Gonzalez’s athleticism is superlative — a human hyperbole. And he plays what seems to be Belichick’s favorite position. Putting aside the quarterbacks, this match might be the most compelling in the draft.

Prior to joining FOX Sports as the AFC East reporter, Henry McKenna spent seven years covering the Patriots for USA TODAY Sports Media Group and Boston Globe Media. Follow him on Twitter at @McKennAnalysis.