Christian Gonzalez NFL Draft Scouting Report

CB, Oregon Ducks

Christian Gonzalez has been a three-year starter in college football, playing his first two seasons at the University of Colorado. He then transferred to the University of Oregon for his final season where he established himself as one the best corners in the class. 

Gonzalez is a long and lean corner with outstanding overall athleticism. He offers excellent size with the height and length to match up against opposing teams’ No. 1 receivers on the boundary. Gonzalez is a cover corner who flashes the ability to lock down his side of the field. Gonzalez is an outstanding man defender who shows the foot quickness, change of direction, and flexibility to match route combinations and stay connected at the top of the routes. He has the ability to flip his hips and carry vertically with excellent long speed. He is excellent in press coverage utilizing a well-timed punch at the line to disrupt the receiver and shows patient feet to consistently stay in front and in phase throughout the stem. 

Gonzalez flashes outstanding instincts and awareness in zone coverage and is able to read the quarterback’s eyes while keying in on moving targets in his zone. He is an easy mover dropping in coverage and flashes excellent short-area quickness to close on anything thrown in front of him. With his long arms, Gonzalez is able to win most 50/50 situations and is able to knock the ball down at the catch point. 

Once considered a weakness, Gonzalez showed drastic improvement with his ball skills as he set career highs in interceptions in 2022 (4). He is a very good open-field tackler and does not shy away from physicality and oftentimes looks to bring it. 

As a lean corner, bigger and stronger receivers can out-muscle him through the stem creating separation. Adding strength will be something Gonzalez needs to do at the next level. 

Overall, Gonzalez offers prototypical physical attributes with his size, length, and athleticism and he pairs his elite traits with outstanding instincts and refined technique. He has the potential to be a lockdown corner at the next level and could develop into a Pro Bowl player early in his career. 

Top Reasons to Buy In:

• Length
• Athleticism
• Instincts

Top Reasons For Concern:

• Play strength

Size (NFL Combine):

Height: 6′ 1”

Weight: 197 lbs

Arm Length: 32”

Hand Size: 9 1/2”

Athletic Testing (NFL Combine):

40-yard Dash: 4.38s

Vertical Jump: 41.5”

Broad Jump: 11′ 1”

Short-Shuttle: TBD

Three-Cone: TBD

Bench Reps: 14 reps 

Ideal Role: Starting outside corner

Scheme Fit: Any 

Prospect Comparison: Patrick Surtain II

TDN Consensus Grade: 86.50/100 (First-Round Value)

• Weissman Grade: 86.50/100

Written By: Brentley Weissman

Exposures: BYU (2022), UCLA (2022), Arizona (2022)

Christian Gonzalez NFL Draft Scouting Report. Add him to your big board here.