New England Patriots - NESN.com
The New England Patriots received a major update on Wednesday, as superstar cornerback Christian Gonzalez returned to practice for the first time in nearly two months. After missing the team’s first two games of the season, he has a shot at making his 2025 debut in Week 3.
At the end of July, Gonzalez suffered a hamstring injury during training camp, and he hasn’t practiced for the Patriots since then. Unsurprisingly, New England’s pass defense has struggled, as both Geno Smith and Tua Tagovailoa threw for over 300 yards against them.
Ahead of practice on Wednesday, head coach Mike Vrabel revealed that Gonzalez would be on the field with the rest of his teammates, indicating he’s making progress with his injury rehab. Sure enough, Gonzalez practiced, and he was thrilled to be back in action for the Pats.
“Excited to be back out there,” Gonzalez said, per Mike Reiss of ESPN. “I love football. This is what I do. So it’s been very challenging to be out for so long.”
In his first full season last year, Gonzalez solidified himself as one of the top cornerbacks in the league, earning All-Pro Second Team honors. Getting him back would provide the defense a huge boost, as they could begin to play man coverage more than the zone coverages they have been forced to run in Weeks 1 and 2.
Just because he practiced on Wednesday, though, does not mean Gonzalez is guaranteed to play in Week 3. He likely still has some hurdles to clear, and the Patriots aren’t going to push him to play if he isn’t fully ready to go. Still, Gonzalez’s status will be worth monitoring over the next few days as the Pats prepare to take on the Pittsburgh Steelers.
