New England Patriots draft pick Christian Gonzalez rocked a strong look at the 2023 NFL Draft.
He just might not be so lucky when he actually puts on a Patriots uniform.
New England selected Gonzalez with the No. 17 overall pick on Thursday night after trading back with the Pittsburgh Steelers, electing to make him the third corner taken on the night and adding him to an ever-growing group of talented and young players in the secondary. The pick has every opportunity to end up being a slam dunk for the Patriots, but we might want to wait to pass judgment until he gets his number.
It will be a while before that happens, of course, as the Patriots will likely outfit him in a No. 50 jersey until they are forced to assign him some real digits prior to the first preseason game. The options just aren’t very good, as his new teammate Matthew Judon pointed out after the pick.
“Your number gonna be trash,” Judon exclaimed in an Instagram story. “42!”
Coincidentally, No. 42 isn’t actually available to Gonzalez as it is currently donned by running back J.J. Taylor. The numbers that will become available (after 10 free agents make their selections) according to the Patriots’ official roster are: Nos. 5, 7, 15, 16, 17, 19, 20, 28, 29, 32, 33, 37, 39, 40, 45 and 47.
Yikes.
Gonzalez might have avoided disaster, however. Though many suspected Jack Jones would make the switch to No. 0 after the NFL implemented a rule change that made it available, the second-year cornerback made it clear he wasn’t looking for a change.
That would leave the number open for Gonzalez, who wore it in his final collegiate season at Oregon. Prior to that, in a two-year stay at Colorado, Gonzalez wore both No. 3 and No. 21, both of which are currently taken.
