A transfer from Colorado. Christian Gonzalez comes from an athletic family. His father was a star basketball player, and his sisters all run track – in fact, his sister Melissa is married to NFL quarterback David Blough. He’s started every game of his collegiate career (30 starts) going back to his true freshman season during COVID, which limited Colorado to 6 games. He’s an athletic freak who presents a lot of upside.

There is some upside to Gonzalez’s game, as he can definitely get a bit stronger. He can be better about maintaining his positioning and winning the rep be preventing the route from crossing his face. It’s all really predicated on his strength and being more physical, which may not ever come to fruition. 

All eyes will be on Christian Gonzalez today. He has incredible ball skills and many teams consider him the No. 1 CB in the draft. At 6-2 he fits the mold of a true lockdown corner. pic.twitter.com/qU5FNCSRlH

— Kyle Lindemann (@LuckIsMadeFF) March 3, 2023

Gonzalez didn’t miss a single game in college. Didn’t deal with any real injuries in college. 

Christian Gonzalez’s scouting report

Athletic Ability (40)

Speed/Athleticism: 20

• Speed (9.5/10) – Excellent athlete. Excellent long speed, there’s no doubting his speed, quickness, or athletic ability. 
• Lateral Quickness (3.5/5) – Shows some lateral quickness ability. Settles in zone coverage decently well and shows some ability to move within his zone. 
• Acceleration (4/5) – Acceleration looks pretty good, might need an extra step to get up to speed. 

Strength: 15 

• Upper Body Strength (2.5/5) – Does not have a strong upper body. Struggles to play with physicality and effectively jam. Doesn’t look strong when he tackles. 
• Lower Body Strength (4.5/5) – Very wiry frame and has room to expand, but lower frame is extremely explosive. Has room to expand if needed. 
• Brute Power (2/5) – Has very little to no brute power. Does not dominate with his strength in any real way, even by cornerbacks standards. 

Hip Flexibility: 15

• Change of Direction (9/10) – Changes direction extremely well. Very fluid hips. Went through combine drills very well and shows that type of athleticism on tape. 
• Recovery (4/5) – Excellent speed to recover really well. Can get into the right positioning that he needs. 

Defender Ability (15)

Tackling: 10 

• Tackling Ability (3/6) – Limited tackler. Doesn’t wrap up, instead dives for ankles. Positioning isn’t great a lot of the time. Shows no interest in tackling. 
• Space Defending (1.5/4) – I do not want Gonzalez defending space. Struggles to get off of blocks and doesn’t really chase plays effectively. 

Pursuit: 5

• Pursuit Angles (2.5/5) – Not a great pursuit defender. Struggles to take proper pursuit angles. Struggles to work through traffic, even when it’s limited or one or two bodies. 

Coverage Ability (30)

Man Coverage: 10

• Coverage Ability (5.5/7) – Very effective trail technique man cornerback. Struggles with maintaining his leverage consistently. Locates and tracks the ball extremely well. 
• Physicality (1.5/3) – Not a very physical cornerback and struggles to get into plays effectively. 

Zone Coverage: 15 

• Coverage Ability (5.5/7) – Gets to his zones quickly and has no issues getting depth. Looks like he can lose track of receivers while in his zone. 
• Recognition (1.5/3) – I’d like to see Gonzales react faster to plays happening in front of him. Can show the ability to peel off and make plays when he needs to, would just like him to be more efficient and consistent doing it. 

Press Coverage: 10 

• Coverage Ability (6/7) – Decent press coverage ability. Very shifty and can react well to. Tends to be better when he doesn’t jam and settles into his trail. 
• Physicality (1.5/3) – Not very physical, but can be effective. 

Overall: (78.5) – 1st/2nd Round