FOXBORO, Mass. – The New England Patriots will be without arguably their best player for the 2025 season opener.
Cornerback Christian Gonzalez, an All-Pro last year in his second NFL season, was ruled out of the Week 1 matchup against the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday due to a lingering hamstring injury. In addition, left tackle and first-round pick Will Campbell is questionable to play due to an ankle injury, coach Mike Vrabel said.
Gonzalez suffered the injury on July 28 and hasn’t practiced since. While Vrabel didn’t say Gonzalez suffered a setback, it has been a lengthy absence for the corner.
“It just hasn’t gone — again, he’s working hard, and whether it’s — we can say one injury is going to be three to four weeks, one is going to be one to two. Everybody heals differently,” Vrabel said earlier this week. “So, just making sure that when the players are back, that they can do their job with confidence, that they can protect themselves on the field and that they can’t make it any worse. Those are some things that I try to use as guidelines for when players are ready to play.”
It’s still unclear whether the Patriots believe Gonzalez can play in Week 2, which is an important matchup since the Pats tend to use Gonzalez on an opponent’s best wide receiver. Next Sunday, the Pats travel to face Tyreek Hill and the Miami Dolphins. They have not placed Gonzalez on injured reserve, which signals that, at least for now, they don’t expect Gonzalez to miss four or more games.
The Patriots built their defense to play a lot of man coverage, with Gonzalez against one wide receiver and high-priced free-agent addition Carlton Davis against the other. Without Gonzalez, however, the Pats may have to change plans.
Still, Vrabel said he was pleased with the way Gonzalez has stayed focused on the team and its game plan even while being unable to practice.
“I do like where he’s at from an engagement standpoint,” Vrabel said. “We’ve been through this with other players, and I like where he’s at from that standpoint. In the meetings, locked in, following along at practice, which is difficult.”
It’s also unclear how much practice time Gonzalez might need before he’s ready to play. Vrabel previously discussed the difficulty for injured players to get into football shape by doing cardio work on the side.
The other part of deciding when Gonzalez can return centers on when he’s able and willing to play. Would he play if he’s 90 percent healed? Should he wait until he’s 100 percent?
“I mean, I don’t use percentages,” Vrabel said, “but, again, I’ll remind you what we talked about as far as when I try to make decisions about players and returning: One, can they make it worse? Two, can they protect themselves? We can all say what we want about this game, but it’s violent. And can you protect yourself? And can you do your job up to the standard that we expect and that the player is used to? So, those are the things that I’ve tried to use when making decisions.”
Gonzalez is eligible for a contract extension this offseason, setting up an important year for the 2023 first-round pick. He’s coming off an excellent 2024 campaign in which he was regularly matched up against each opponent’s top receiver and still earned a second-team All-Pro nod. Expectations for Gonzalez were sky high entering training camp this summer.
But Gonzalez suffered the hamstring injury on the first day of padded practice and hasn’t practiced since. Now, we know he’ll miss at least one game, too.
(Photo: Winslow Townson / Getty Images)
Source link
