There is a lot of talk surrounding the New England Patriots, and if we’re being honest, most of it is negative and has little to do with the product on the field. Well, summers in the NFL aren’t just for rest before the grind of the NFL season.

Summers are for figuring out what comes next with your franchise in terms of contracts. There is one New England Patriot who makes perfect sense in terms of extending, and it should get done sooner rather than later, in an effort to lift the dark cloud off the franchise and save the team some money.

Patriots should extend Christian Gonzalez before 2026 season

I don’t know anyone who would say the Patriots shouldn’t aim to get a long-term deal done with Gonzalez. I mean, even the Patriots hinted at that when they picked up his fifth-year option.

In 2025, Gonzalez finally blossomed into a lockdown corner after there were signs in 2023 and 2024, but some injury bugs limited him. He even had a tremendous Super Bowl against the Seahawks, holding NFL Offensive Player of the Year Jaxon Smith-Njigba to just four receptions for 27 yards.

He’s truly one of the better up-and-coming talents in the league, regardless of his decision, as he doesn’t even turn 24 until late June. So the question shouldn’t be if, it should be when. And with players like Devon Witherspoon in Seattle also up for extensions, getting a deal done early could save the Pats a lot of money. For more on what a contract would look like, here is Wendell Ferreira of A to Z Sports.

What would a Christian Gonzalez extension look like?

“Drake Maye will probably get his own extension next offseason, but now it’s time to talk about Gonzalez. He makes $2.809 million this year, and it jumps to $18.119 million next season because of his fully guaranteed fifth-year option. Gonzalez is a premier talent at a premium position, and he’s only 23. It’s a complete no-brainer, and the sooner the Patriots pull the trigger, the less expensive it will be.”

“Now, the Patriots could make Gonzalez the highest-paid cornerback in new money — currently it’s Trent McDuffie at $31 million a year — and still dilute it. A four-year, $128 million extension would be $32 million per year in new money. But in practicality, it would be a six-year, $148.9 million contract ($24.8 million a year in real money).” – Ferreira

Bottom line

We have years of precedent in these situations, and they all end with one common theme: the earlier a deal gets done, the better for everyone. With so much bad PR in the New England area right now, killing two birds with one stone by creating some positive spin and saving some money makes a lot of sense in my opinion.