Christian Gonzalez has drawn comparisons to Stephon Gilmore despite only playing four games in 2023 before a torn labrum and dislocated shoulder derailed his rookie season. But the former New England Patriots cornerback is all in on Gonzalez, and has been offering advice to the 22-year-old.
Speaking to ESPN’s Mike Reiss, Gilmore said he told Gonzalez to seek him out whenever he needed anything. He has, and Gilmore has been happy to talk to a fellow cornerback.
“I tell him all the time, ‘I wish I would have known what I know now in Year 5 or 4.’ But if I can teach a guy like him, in his second year, the sky is the limit for him,” Gilmore told Reiss. “I see a lot of myself in him. The thing about playing corner is the mind game. If you get the mind right, I think he has all the ability to be whatever he wants to be.”
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Gonzalez was drafted in the first round of the 2023 NFL Draft by New England. Gilmore hadn’t been with the organization since 2020, but he texted cornerbacks coach Mike Pellegrino and told him that Gonzalez was “going to be good.”
In his four games for the Patriots last year, Gonzalez amassed 17 tackles, three passes defended and an interception. Now that he’s healthy, he’ll look to build on those numbers and be a crucial part to the defense going into 2024.
If Gonzalez will have a career similar to Gilmore’s remains to be seen, but it’s clear Gilmore sees it being a successful one.
