Strong Start From Patriots’ Christian Gonzalez Cements Him In Award Race

It has only taken two games for an abundance of praise to start flowing in for New England Patriots cornerback Christian Gonzalez.

And if Ty Law is raving about Gonzalez’s performance and Bill Belichick is commending him as well, then the rookie must be doing something right.

Gonzalez’s NFL career certainly is off to an encouraging start with the Oregon product holding up well in coverage against some of the elite wide receivers in the league, which led to an interception on a deep ball from Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa to Tyreek Hill in Sunday night’s 24-17 loss at Gillette Stadium.

The 21-year-old also has been a sure tackler — a question mark on him coming out of the draft — with 13 tackles, good for second most on the team only behind linebacker Ja’Whaun Bentley. Gonzalez also registered a sack on Jalen Hurts in New England’s season-opening loss to the Philadelphia Eagles.

Aside from the recognition given by Law and Belichick, the betting market also has acknowledged what Gonzalez has done so far on the football field.

Gonzalez, who opened up with the fifth-shortest odds to win Defensive Rookie of the Year after being drafted 17th overall by the Patriots, has jumped up a couple spots on the DraftKings Sportsbook betting sheet. Gonzalez now has the third-shortest odds at +1200 to win the award, trailing only Eagles defensive tackle Jalen Carter (+200) and Houston Texans defensive end Will Anderson (+475).

Gonzalez arguably is off to a better start than both Carter and Anderson, but it isn’t easy for a cornerback to become the Defensive Rookie of the Year. Only three times since 2000 has a cornerback won the award.

One of those times came last year with New York Jets corner Sauce Gardner claiming the hardware. And if Gonzalez can build off a promising start, he could follow in Gardner’s footsteps.