One of the more talented corners in the entire draft, Oregon’s Christian Gonzalez will look to tap into his immense physical traits to try and vault his draft value as he enters the 2023 NFL draft.
Here is everything you need to know about the Ducks defender:
Vitals
Height: 6-2
Weight: 201
Class: Sophomore
Strengths
One of the most athletic defensive players in the draft, Gonzalez combines that with a long and lengthy frame to be a true shadow corner. He’s able to keep up with top-level wide receivers on any level of the field. His height and length do not hinder him from playing low off the snap and flowing with receivers down the field. Gonzalez’s track-level speed is more than enough to make up for any mistakes or latency in the route, and he can often finish the route for receivers down the field.
Gonzalez does not lack for instincts either. He feels receivers routes well in trailing, and he easily makes plays on balls a the top of routes using his length to play the ball well and knock down a ton of passes. That same length helps him clamp down on receivers at the line, and while his play strength is not great, that initial impact of his hand landing on the receiver’s chest is felt by receivers and can sometimes stun them.
There is no hesitation from Gonzalez in run support as well. He is a willing tackler who uses his length and speed well to pursue and wrap up ball carriers should they make it to his area. His play strength could of course improve but it wasn’t often he was getting busted through and it felt like he was not a liability in that area.
Weaknesses
While Gonzalez is ultra-talented, there has to be concern about his lack of overall play strength. With his size he should easily be jamming receivers at the line and boxing them into the sideline down the field. Yet pass catchers often do not have issues escaping his attempts to jam them and can typically flow up the field without issue, though he usually catches up. It would be nice to see the strength and defensive coaches work with him to make him more of a physical threat and teach him how to use his body more adequately to be a true press man lockdown corner at the next level.
Gonzalez must also become more consistent in playing the football down the field as opposed to playing the receiver. Right now he doesn’t quite know what to do when he catches up to a pass catcher down the field and generally just sticks his arms out for deflections. He got better with this later in the season, but this will lead to penalties down the road. He must be more consistent and fluid in turning around and playing the ball. If he does more picks will come his way.
Projection
The league will always have a need for long athletic corners that can stick with talented receivers, and Gonzalez is one of the most gifted of that definition. He is far into his development and does not have many things to work on, so his transition to next-level play should be very quick, and if he is able to add some weight and learn to use his body better he could accelerate into a top corner in the league within his first few years. Teams will no doubt take a chance on him early in the draft and hope to mold him into their very own lockdown No. 1 corner in the near future.
Projection: Top 15 Pick
