Christian Gonzalez Vs. A.J. Brown Headlines Patriots-Eagles Practice

FOXBORO, Mass. -- Patriots cornerback Christian Gonzalez is accustomed to drawing tough assignments.

New England lost Gonzalez just four games into his rookie season, but in that first month he lined up against the Philadelphia Eagles' A.J. Brown and Devonta Smith, the Miami Dolphins' Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle, the New York Jets' Garrett Wilson and the Dallas Cowboys' CeeDee Lamb.

It simply doesn't get any tougher than that.

Brown and Smith got the upper hand back in September of 2023, combining for 14 catches in a victory at Gillette Stadium. Gonzalez had an opportunity to get back Tuesday, however, and did just that in a joint practice session with Philly.

"He's a great player," Brown said of Gonzalez following practice. "I had picked him coming out two years ago as the best defensive back in the (2023) draft. He's a great player. He gave me good work today."

Brown and Gonzalez matched up with one another three times during the 1-on-1 period, with the latter winning twice.

The #Patriots had Christian Gonzalez exclusively line up against A.J. Brown and Devonta Smith in 1-on-1s.

It looked like this:
0 > 11
0 < 6
0 < 6
0 < 11 (TD)
0 > 11 pic.twitter.com/vxl5LqVDtB

— Keagan Stiefel (@KeaganStiefel) August 13, 2024

Gonzalez was perhaps the busiest defender in all of New England on Tuesday, getting the majority of reps in competitive team drills. Philadelphia knew that, and wanted no part of him, consistently picking on Marco Wilson -- who was playing opposite the 22-year-old with Jonathan Jones, Marcus Jones and Shaun Wade sidelined.

Brown, having an opportunity to work against someone else, shined during those periods, making seven total catches during team drills.

The Patriots and Eagles weren't going to keep them away from each other for long, though. Gonzalez and Brown were once again matched up in the red zone, with the second-year cornerback getting the better of the exchange on the lone ball that was thrown in his direction.

Gonzalez has received some flak for his training camp thus far, looking a step behind what many expected. Is that an us problem? Is it true that he just needs time to work back into himself? We don't know, but it was apparent Tuesday that the guy we all expected to see coming into camp was still in there somewhere.