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Steelers Scouting Report: Oregon CB Christian Gonzalez

Could Christian Gonzalez be the missing piece to the Pittsburgh Steelers' defense?

Derrick Bell

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The Pittsburgh Steelers will be looking at cornerbacks this offseason, and one NFL Draft standout could be the perfect fit.

Oregon cornerback Christian Gonzalez spent his first two seasons as a starter on the Colorado defense prior to transferring to Eugene ahead of the 2022 season. A former 4-star recruit from The Colony, Texas, Gonzalez was an accomplished track star in high school in addition to being a spectacular two-way player on the football field. 

In what was truly a breakout campaign, Gonzalez was named to the Coaches Pac 12 All-Conference first team prior to declaring early for the 2023 NFL Draft. 

With the Steelers surely in the market for some cornerback help in the offseason, could Gonzalez fit the billing for what they'll be looking for?

Gonzalez primarily aligns on the boundary, specifically the field side, of the Oregon defense. The Ducks' defense plays a bunch of different zone coverages, primarily cover 3 and cover 2, where the corners are tasked with getting their eyes on the quarterback. When tasked with man coverage, Gonzalez prefers to position himself near the line of scrimmage, utilizing mostly soft-shoe press to mirror receivers and occasionally mixing in some strikes to throw off the timing of the receiver. Gonzalez also has experience lining up inside in the slot, which was something that he did at times this year for the first time in his career. 

Strengths

Everything starts with Gonzalez's build. At 6-2, 200 pounds and plus length, he possesses the ideal frame that teams will be looking for when searching for bigger cornerback options. In addition to his physical composition, Gonzalez is an explosive athlete who's blessed with great straight-line speed. A former track and field star in high school, Gonzalez boasts a personal best of 21.6 seconds in the 200-meters which took place in the Texas State Championships. 

A member of Bruce Feldman's freak list, Gonzalez was clocked at 23 MPH on the GPS in college while also posting a remarkable 42-inch vertical jump.

He's more than just a workout warrior as his athleticism pops on tape with every game. Wide receivers find it nearly impossible to stack Gonzalez when working vertically as he's almost always able to stay in phase, stride-for-stride with even the faster receivers that he gets matched up against. 

In the event that he does fall behind early in the rep, Gonzalez has more than enough recovery speed to get back into the play thanks to superb acceleration, allowing him to get to his top gear with ease. There are few, if any, corners in this class that you would trust more to match up with speed on the outside than Gonzalez. 

From a technical perspective, Gonzalez showcases patience at the line of scrimmage and stays square to the receiver, waiting for them to make a move before opening the gate. He can use a motor technique or a kick step at the line of scrimmage and also shows the capacity to take leverage steps in off-coverage. He plays with good leverage to go along with fairly smooth footwork. 

Gonzalez has rare hip fluidity for a bigger cornerback and those oily hips show up when he's forced to turn and run, but there's no noticeable lag or delay in his movements when forced to do so. 

Some of his best displays of athleticism come when working in zone coverage and reacting to the eyes of the quarterback. With good zone eyes and discipline, Gonzalez has a solid understanding of his depth on particular assignments and displays a good feel for route concepts heading his way. There were also examples on tape where you could see that he was noticeably baiting opposing quarterbacks into dangerous throws. 

After his two-interception performance against his former team this season, Gonzalez credited his film study for his second interception of the afternoon which exhibits good study habits and work ethic at a young age. 

His explosiveness shows up on tape as he can quickly close the gap on throws underneath. 

One of the biggest improvements this season came in the area of ball production, as Gonzalez was an impactful playmaker for the Ducks' defense. 

As the season went on, there were noticeable improvements in regard to locating the football in the air. Gonzalez tracks the football well, will use his vertical to sky in the air to contest the receiver at the highest point, and play through the receiver's hands all the way to the turf. You can tell that he has a former receiver background from his high school days, as he has soft hands and the ability to pluck the ball out of the air away from his frame. 

When Gonzalez is able to get his hands on a turnover opportunity, he makes the most of it and transitions effortlessly from defender to ball carrier with some electric moments in the open field. 

Another impressive area of his game is his open-field tackling and impact in run support. Gonzalez is willing to mix it up in the run game and has no issues holding up when teams specifically target him by forcing him into the run fit. 

There were several examples of him making strong, wrap-up tackles on bigger running backs in the hole which resulted in very few yards after contact. He's a pretty strong kid who won't get bullied by stalk blocks.

Weaknesses

While Gonzalez has the build and strength to suggest otherwise, he doesn't always utilize those gifts well as he's more comfortable using finesse as opposed to physicality. He has the playing strength to go up a weight class consistently, but he doesn't show it consistently. There were some reps where bigger receivers were able to create some separation with their bodies whether through the stem or at the breaking point. 

Gonzalez wasn't asked to play much man coverage, specifically off-man so there is an element of relative unknown in that regard. There were some issues with his hand placement in press from time to time when he was trying to jam receivers, but this was more of a changeup for him anyways, so it wasn't super concerning. 

Gonzalez's transitions working downhill are fine, but his change of direction ability leaves a little to be desired. However, he's so explosive once he gets going that he mitigates some of these concerns. 

Some of this is expected given his bigger body type, but it does seem to take him an extra tick to gather himself before positioning his body to move in a different direction, which could deter some teams that want to deploy more man coverages right off the bat. Shiftier receivers were able to create some separation from him when working quick-hitting routes underneath such as slant, outs, and in breakers. 

Some of the more nuanced receivers with more expansive release packages were able to beat him off the line of scrimmage with inside fakes which caused him to commit early. This was largely neutralized in college because he was a better athlete than everyone that he went up against, but that will not always be the case at the next level.

Numbers to Note

- Career totals: 128 total tackles, 17 pass deflections, four interceptions, 128 interception return yards

- 2022 totals: 50 total tackles, seven pass deflections, four interceptions, 128 interception return yards

- Reduced his number of penalties each year from four in 2020, to three in 2021 down to just two in 2022 (PFF)

- Only missed three tackles across 700+ snaps in 2022 (PFF)

- Career highs in both pass deflections (7) and interceptions (4) as a junior in 2022

Projection

It's very clear that Christian Gonzales is loaded with talent and it's also important to note that he won't turn 21 years old until a couple of months after he's drafted into the NFL. As it currently stands after his breakout junior campaign, Gonzalez projects as a year one starter in the NFL, preferably in a scheme that will allow him to use his length and speed at the line of scrimmage. 

Most of his current weaknesses are things that can be improved upon with time and requisite coaching, but like every prospect, he'll require some patience in his transition to the next level. 

Just based on his athletic traits and production against quality competition at such a young age, he's undoubtedly flushed with upside as he could potentially morph into a true CB1 in the NFL with the right development path. 

Without a true leader in the clubhouse at the time of this writing, Gonzalez deserves to be in the conversation for the first cornerback off of the board at the NFL Draft. 

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Derrick Bell
DERRICK BELL

Derrick Bell is a University of Louisville grad who's covered the Pittsburgh Steelers since 2019. Prior to AllSteelers, Derrick contributed to Steel City Blitz. 

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