Skip to content

Ad Disclosure

Former Oregon star Christian Gonzalez scores first NFL TD for Patriots

Mark Kern

By Mark Kern

Published:

Former Oregon star Christian Gonzalez is reminding fans it is a good time to be an Oregon fan, as the Ducks are the only remaining undefeated team in college football and are all but assured a spot in the College Football Playoff.

On Sunday, the former Duck added to Oregon’s big 2024 by scoring the first touchdown of his career during the New England Patriots game against the Miami Dolphins. A lockdown defender in the secondary, Gonzalez recorded his touchdown off a scoop-and-score instead of a pick-6.

Gonzalez picked up a fumble by the Dolphins and he took it back 63 yards to score the touchdown. He missed a lot of his rookie year with an injury, but he is regarded as 1 of the best young defensive players in the NFL.

He started his collegiate career at Colorado, where he played from 2020-2021 and finished those 2 seasons with 78 tackles in Boulder. In 2022, Gonzalez transferred to Oregon and began his ascension to stardom.

In his lone season in Eugene, Gonzalez finished with 51 tackles and 4 interceptions for the Ducks while being named a First-team All-Pac-12 performer. The Patriots saw enough to grab Gonzalez with the 17th overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft.

Despite the big play by Gonzalez, it wasn’t enough as the Patriots lost the game to the Dolphins, 34-15. New England is now 3-9 on the season.

Mark Kern