New England Patriots Christian Gonzalez's Diving Interception Against Miami Dolphins

Former Oregon Ducks and current New England Patriots cornerback Christian Gonzalez caught his first interception of the 2024 season against the Miami Dolphins on a diving play over the middle.

Sep 29, 2024; Santa Clara, California, USA; San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Jauan Jennings (15) runs the ball against New England Patriots cornerback Christian Gonzalez (0) during the second quarter at Levi's Stadium. / Sergio Estrada-Imagn Images

Former Oregon Ducks and current New England Patriots cornerback Christian Gonzalez caught his first interception of the 2024 season against the Miami Dolphins on a diving play over the middle.

Gonzalez intercepted Miami quarterback Tyler Huntley in New England territory. New England running back Rhamondre Stevenson rushed for a 33 yard touchdown to give the Patriots the lead in the first quarter, 7-3.

The Patriots lost to the Dolphins 15-10.

Gonzo with the pick! #ProDucks x @chrisgonzo28 pic.twitter.com/2IFoLcNzHD

— Oregon Football (@oregonfootball) October 6, 2024

Miami is playing its third game without starting quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, and a struggling New England team looks to take advantage.

The New England offense was unable to sustain any momentum outside of the scoring drive after Gonzalez's interception.

Against the Dolphins, Gonzalez totaled six tackles and two pass breakups in addition to his interception. The New England defense only gave up one touchdown to the struggling Miami offense.

On the Pat McAfee Show, New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers praised the young cornerback as one of the more talented defensive players in the league.

“I think he’s a great kid. He’s super, super talented. He is an elite player," said Rodgers. "When a guy is going to follow, we call it star coverage. The respect level from me goes up… I give those guys who do star coverage a lot of credit and a lot of respect. And Christian is one of those guys who enjoys the challenge, enjoys the competition and will go side to side.”

The Patriots are 1-3 in 2024, losing three straight games to the Seattle Seahawks, New York Jets, and San Francisco 49ers. New England notably moved on from legendary coach Bill Belichick after the 2023 season, hiring former Patriots linebacker Jerod Mayo as the team's coach.

The Patriots drafted Gonzalez with the No. 17 pick in the 2023 NFL draft. In his rookie season, Gonzalez was sidelined after four games with a season-ending shoulder injury. The young cornerback registered three pass deflections and 14 solo tackles in four games as a rookie.

Sep 15, 2024; Foxborough, Massachusetts, USA; New England Patriots cornerback Christian Gonzalez (0) defends against Seattle Seahawks wide receiver DK Metcalf (14) in the second half at Gillette Stadium. / David Butler II-Imagn Images

Gonzalez spent his rookie year with Belichick as his coach. He revealed what he learned from the legendary coach on the Richard Sherman Podcast recently.

Gonzalez said, “One thing Belichick always talked about, he would always ask us, ‘Who’s the offensive coordinator?' My rookie year, I’m like, ‘OK, he’s the offensive coordinator. So what?’ Now, in the offseason I was able to learn that this offensive coordinator came from this tree. They did this. They like to attack a corner like me this way. That type of thing I was able to pick up on this offseason.”

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