On second-and-nine, quarterback Jarrett Stidham launched the ball downfield. It never reached its intended target. Instead, it landed in the hands of New England cornerback Christian Gonzalez.
The cornerback read the play perfectly, jumped in the air, intercepted the ball and the Broncos’ Super Bowl hopes.
It was the first interception for Gonzalez this season, but it was also the most important one. Not only did it give the ball back to the Patriots, but it also helped them seal the game and advance to the title game.
On Sunday afternoon, the New England Patriots landed in California. With Super Bowl preparations underway, the team set up camp at Stanford University in Palo Alto ahead of their matchup against the Seattle Seahawks at Levi’s Stadium.
During the Opening Night press conference, Gonzalez appeared calm. Poised. Focused. But still a little bit in disbelief. When he takes the field at Levi’s Stadium Sunday night, he may still look as if he’s making sure the moment is real. He isn’t lost, just present, savouring every second.
“You've always imagined it. You're dreaming about it as a kid, a young kid playing ball,” Gonzalez told the reporters ahead of Super Bowl LX.
The star cornerback now finally gets to live his childhood dream. After a journey filled with obstacles, Gonzalez can finally say it: I made it. In just a few days, he’ll lace up his cleats and compete for the Lombardi Trophy.
Born in Texas to a Colombian family, sports were always woven into his life. His father, Hector, played basketball at the University of Texas–El Paso. Two of his three sisters were two-time collegiate All-Americans in track and field. Greatness, it seems, ran in the family.
And without their support, Gonzalez might not be playing football today.
Shortly after his sophomore high school year started, he was relegated to the junior varsity team and forced to play quarterback. The team struggled and went 1-9.
Frustrated and discouraged, he felt like his talent and athleticism were being wasted. The sport he once loved began to feel like a burden. He seriously considered walking away from football altogether and focusing on basketball instead. But his family refused to let him quit.
But his family refused to let him quit and encouraged him to stay true to his passion. So, he changed high schools.
At The Colony, he found his rhythm again. Mainly, his new coaches saw something in him he didn’t even know himself – he was much better on defence than on offence. Until then, he had been a wide receiver.
“Christian, I don’t want you to play offence, I want you to play defence,” said Scott Johnson, the defensive coordinator for The Colony.
“I’ve never played defence,” Gonzalez said.
“I’m going to teach you how to play corner if you just go over there,” Johnson told him.
That conversation altered the course of Gonzalez’s career. He spent the summer embracing the challenge, working tirelessly to learn the position. Looking back, he sees his decision to switch schools as one of the best of his life.
“We talk like, if I never would’ve left, I probably wouldn’t have gone to college because that was one of my things - I didn’t want to be the kid to make my parents pay for college,” Gonzalez said.
After a stellar junior season, scholarship offers started pouring in. If there was one thing Gonzalez didn’t have to worry about, it was paying for his education; Miami, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Purdue, Alabama - some of the best football programs in the country - expressed interest. He chose and committed to Purdue, but later flipped his commitment to Colorado and signed with the Buffaloes.
Once in Boulder, Gonzalez became a full-time cornerback. Colorado found a hidden gem. He started every game as a freshman and took another leap as a sophomore, finishing the season with 53 tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss, and five pass breakups.
The standout defender then transferred to the University of Oregon, where he followed his Colorado cornerbacks coach. After recording 45 tackles, three interceptions, and seven broken passes, he was named first-team All-Pac-12.
Words of praise were falling on Gonzalez. “Sky’s the limit for Christian,” Oregon coach Dan Lanning said. “Whatever team gets Christian, they’re hitting a home run. He’s one of the best corners I’ve ever been around and a better human.”
With his draft stock soaring, Gonzalez elected to forgo his remaining two years of eligibility and enter the 2023 NFL Draft. The New England Patriots selected him 17th overall.
Before receiving his Patriots jersey under the bright lights on the podium, Gonzalez opened his custom-made jacket to reveal the horizontal tricolour of blue, yellow, and red, a tribute to his Colombian heritage.
“It means everything. I put it on for everyone back in Colombia. I love that they’re able to look up to me,” Gonzalez said.
This week, Gonzalez is set to be the first Colombian heritage player to appear in a Super Bowl. But despite a favourable draft position, his journey to the biggest stage in football wasn’t easy. A few setbacks tried to hold him back.
In his rookie season, the cornerback appeared in four games before a torn labrum in his shoulder ended his first professional year. Despite trying to silence the noise and focus on recovery, he eventually couldn’t escape the emerging questions from the media, fans, and experts. Can he make a comeback? Is he going to be as good as he was before he needed surgery?
It was just another hurdle. Once again, Gonzalez silenced the critics. Returning in 2024, he established himself as one of the league’s top cornerbacks. Questions faded. Confidence returned. Nobody could doubt him anymore.
From there, it seemed like the only way was up. But before the current season even began, another setback struck - a hamstring injury during training camp sidelined him for the first three games.
But it was just another hiccup for Gonzalez. Once healthy, he played in every remaining game, often tasked with shadowing the opponent’s top receiver. He earned his first Pro Bowl selection, and the Patriots leaned on him all season.
They’ll need him again on Sunday. He is expected to spend much of the night matched up against Seahawks star wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba, and head coach Mike Vrabel has full trust in him. “There’s no secret that we’ll need him to play well, as well as the rest of our other good players,” he said.
Gonzalez is preparing to play in the biggest game of his career. No doubt he will be at his best. He has been dreaming about this since he was a child.
“You watch all the Super Bowls growing up every year,” Gonzalez said. “I think it's a pretty cool feeling.”
He understands the magnitude - without being overwhelmed by it. He is not shying away from the moment.
“Treat it like another game, but you know it’s not another game,” the cornerback said. “It’s the last one, so you just go out there, and you just give it all you’ve got. Even while you’re playing, you still get to enjoy it. You get to run out there and see the field that says ‘Super Bowl.’ Little things like that."
After nearly walking away from football, after injuries and doubt, Christian Gonzalez no longer has to dream about the Super Bowl.
He gets to live it.