Locked On Patriots - Daily Podcast On The New England Patriots - Shockwave: Christian Gonzalez Extension Failure Will Shake Patriots' Plans

Starting point is 00:00:00 Christian Gonzalez not signing an extension over the next week would put the Patriots in an incredibly difficult position next year. This is Lockdown Patriots. You are Locked on Patriots, your daily New England Patriots podcast, part of the Locked on Podcast Network, your team every day. What's happening. I am your host, Nick Cattels on today's show. Find out why I'm feeling even better about the offensive line than I was two months.

Starting point is 00:00:35 ago. In the second segment, all eyes are on Zach Corr this season as he faces multiple obstacles. But first, if Christian Gonzalez fails to sign an extension, I am much more concerned about the 2027 off season than I am about the 2026 regular season. Today's episode is brought to by Game Time. Download the GameTime app, create an account. Use code lockdown for $20 off your first purchase. Christian Gonzalez talk is everywhere. Christian coach Flight White. Gonzalez's positional coach during the offseason actually went on Felger and Mazz, 985, the Sports Hub, this week.

Starting point is 00:01:14 He said a number of things that the early language in the contract that was offered was, quote unquote, trash. The Patriots are not willing to go to Devin Witherspoon money. Well, according to Coach Flight White, that is not true. And the coach also said that he thinks an extension is eventually going to get done. Meanwhile, Jeremy Fowler of ESPN wrote on Wednesday, day, Gonzalez and the Pats are not close on several elements of the deal. New England has spent big on free agents, but not necessarily on many market resetting

Starting point is 00:01:45 extensions. Gonzalez, who as of now does not plan to negotiate during the season, is testing that in a big way. I am not going to discuss the terms. We've done that. I'm not going to discuss the 2026 impact or lack thereof if an extent. is not signed. We've done that. But what we haven't discussed is the fact that not executing an extension with Gonzalez over the next week or so sets up the 2027 offseason for the Patriots to be incredibly, incredibly complicated. You're not going to extend Christian Gonzalez next summer.

Starting point is 00:02:28 I don't think that's going to happen. I don't see it happening. And if you don't extend Christian Gonzalez by next summer, there's going to be significant damage to the defensive foundation that is being built in New England. This goes beyond Christian Gonzalez, folks. This goes well beyond Gonzalez. Everybody's focused on what it means for Gonzalez and what it means for the cornerback position and Robert Kraft, whether he spends money, doesn't spend money. Again, we've had all of those conversations. But today, we got that different angle for you. Because if no extension is done, Gonzalez walks into the final year of his rookie contract. And on top of that, the Patriots have Drake May, who was extension eligible next offseason. Now, you knew all that,

Starting point is 00:03:16 because we've discussed it here on this podcast multiple times. We're not going to dig deep into that. We've done it already. But this actually goes further than Gonzalez. It goes further than May. Let's say you don't pay. You don't pay Gonzalez. You get to next off season. You're You say we're going to pay Drake May. We're not paying both Gonzalez and May. Well, that means you're going to trade Gonzalez. How are you going to replace Gonzalez? Well, it doesn't make sense to go out and spend big money on a corner if you're not willing to spend the big money on Gonzalez.

Starting point is 00:03:49 So my guess would be the Patriots would try to replace Gonzalez via the draft. Well, number one, do you pick well? Do you do a good job with that pick in a vacuum? can the person that you draft, can that guy actually come close to replacing Gonzalez in year one? I find that very hard to believe. And of course, if you're going to draft a corner in next year's first round, and maybe you have two first round picks and the first round depends on the trade, right? I'd imagine you'd have two first.

Starting point is 00:04:24 But inevitably, you are going to kick the can down the road at another position because now you have to fill the cornerback one position, which right now is filled by an all pro corner. So you're creating an extra hole, no matter how many picks you get. But here's the biggest thing to me. And I was thinking about this over the past 24 hours because I'm just so tired of the same stuff being discussed.

Starting point is 00:04:52 I get it. It's the news cycle. And we're waiting for week one. And the Gonzalez news is no doubt the biggest thing that's happening right now with the Patriots. But I started to think about how this decision and how this negotiation will impact the team and impact the plan. And if you are trying to figure out how the 2027 offseason looks like, if you're Elliot Wolf and Ryan Cowden, unless so at this point of the year, Mike Vrable, well, guess what?

Starting point is 00:05:24 You're looking at a massive, and I mean massive reset on defense. Let's just paint the picture for you. Let's say Gonzalez is gone. There goes corner number one. Christian Barmore will be walking into 2027 with no more guaranteed money left on his contract. Are you going to extend Barmore by restructuring his contract? Or is Barmore gone? There goes another one of your top five defenders.

Starting point is 00:05:52 How about Carlton Davis? Your number two corner. As we've talked about before, Davis has an out in his contract following this season. So are you going to restructure Davis, extend him? He'll be 30 years old. Davis is not the only guy that has an out in his contract after this year. So does Robert Spillane. And let's stick with linebacker.

Starting point is 00:06:14 Christian Ellis is an unrestricted free agent after this season. Hopefully you're catching my drift by now. How about Kevin Byrd? Kevin Byrd is also an unrestricted free agent after 2026. How about Harold Landry? Let's say if Landry gets back healthy and looks good, Well, guess what? Landry also has an out in his contract like Davis and like Spillane. Without Christian Gonzalez, guys that are good, very good, or let's even just say at least dependable,

Starting point is 00:06:51 guys that are contractually set without any outs, without any funny language, the guys you would have, Milton Williams, we'll start with the defensive line. No doubt Milton Williams would be your best player on defense. It wouldn't even be close. If you wave goodbye to Gonzalez, Milton Williams is your best player on that side of the football, and he's one of those guys that you can depend on. Very good, very, very good player.

Starting point is 00:07:19 You can hope that Elijah Ponder and or gave Accus pop this year, and you go into 2027 feeling pretty good about that guy. Draymont Jones, he's at least good. So you've got Draymont Jones. Corey Durdon, maybe. Maybe Corey Durdon plays well enough, so you walk into next season, feeling pretty confident about what he brings to the table. But there's a lot of ifs, right?

Starting point is 00:07:47 Aside from Milton Williams, is Ponder that guy, is Acus that guy? Dremont Jones. Is he at least average? Does he slide back a little bit? How does Cory Durdon handle being the third guy in the rotation? Can he take that step forward? lots of lots of ifs. And then you get to linebacker.

Starting point is 00:08:10 Robert Spillane again has an out on his contract. Do you bring them back at 31 years old? Or do you wave goodbye? Do you re-sign Christian Ellis? Or is Christian Ellis gone signing elsewhere? Now you're looking at, you know, well, maybe Namdi Obi-Izor pops or maybe Khalil Jacobs pops, a UDFA, a late round pick, those two guys respectively. Maybe, you know, Darius Mousa, actually, you know, finds his way, a guy that was cut by the Giants.

Starting point is 00:08:46 How about defensive backs? Well, Marcus Jones, 100%, very good football player. You know that. Davis, do you keep him at 30? Do you restructure him? Does he fall off a little bit this year? Does he stay healthy this year? if you trade Gonzalez and you decide that Davis is not for your future.

Starting point is 00:09:07 Well, now what you've got left that corner is Jones, again, very good football player, but also 5 foot 8. And then Charles Woods and Karam Prunty and Channing Canada, the last guy, a UDFA. Safety. Well, Craig Woodson, I'm very confident that Craig Woodson is going to be a very good football player. But you've got Bayard, who will be 34 years old and walking into free agency. I mean, if you end up not extending Gonzalez, I don't think you are extending him next offseason,

Starting point is 00:09:41 which means you are inevitably going to trade him. You trade him and you look at the rest of this defense and how many guys have question marks because of age, because of contractual status, because of health status. I mean, you pretty much look at this defense and you say, from what we know right now, early September, 2006. You've got Milton Williams, Marcus Jones, Dramont Jones, and Craig Woodson. How about the other seven guys to feel the defense? Now, of course, Gonzalez is only one guy,

Starting point is 00:10:22 but you're creating another issue and you're trying to fill a premier position when you have all of those other questions that you're going to have to address. And we did not even touch the offensive side of the ball. What happened to? if AJ Brown's not the same guy. What happens if Hunter Henry falls off a cliff this year? Yeah, you sign them to an extension, but does it matter? And you're just going to look at a ton of turnaround again, or turnover rather, like just a ton of turnover on this roster for like the third straight off season. Is that what you want to do? Aren't you trying to build a foundation and part of that foundation is obviously keeping your best players? Like this isn't about

Starting point is 00:11:06 2026. I honestly believe Christian Gonzalez will be out there playing football in 2026. This is about building the team. This is about going in the next off season with one less problem. And that problem would be a gigantic migraine if you have to trade your best defensive player in one of the best corners in football. In an off season that is already set to be pretty chaotic on that side of the football, this Gonzalez negotiation isn't just about Christian Gonzalez. And it's not just about 2026.

Starting point is 00:11:46 It's not even just about 2027. It is about the future of your football team and trying to build it the right way. I would want one last question, especially when that question is a gigantic question, going into that 2027 off season. Coming up, appreciating these significant obstacles that core will face in 2026. This is Lockdown Patriots, part of the lockdown. podcast network. Now the number one sports podcast network, your team every day. There are more live events than ever worth seeing right now. Games, concerts, comedy shows.

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Starting point is 00:13:09 Lockdown for $20 off your first purchase terms apply. Again, create an account in Redeem Code, L-O-C-K-E-D-O-N for $20 off. Download the GameTime app today. Thank you for making us your first listed and for being an everydayer. Aside from Mike Vrable, Zach Corp by far to me has the most pressure on him among the staff. And it's clear. And there are a number of things that Zach Corr has to be thinking about and that we should be thinking about as we are on the press. of the 2026 season.

Starting point is 00:13:48 I mean, I'm recording this on Wednesday, late afternoon. We're a week away. We're a week away from week one in Seattle, seven days away. And if you're listening to this on Thursday, we're obviously six days away. Not a mathematician, not a math professor, but there you have it. A lot of obstacles, a lot of challenges for Zach Corr. And we start, of course, with the pass rush. I mean, we've discussed the edge position.

Starting point is 00:14:14 We've talked about the pass rush, but will Zach Corp be able to find a way to generate a pass rush with four guys with the four edges you have on the current roster? With Draymont Jones, Elijah Ponder, Gabacchus, and Quintavius Hutchins. Are you going to be able to generate that pass rush with four up front? And if you're not capable of doing that, then will you start to utilize, some of the versatility that you have with Milton Williams and Christian Barmore, because you could play some games and put those guys out at the end every once in a while. Will we see Core do that? Now, the one thing that we've noticed, watching this team through camp and watching this team

Starting point is 00:14:59 through the preseason games, I was at the joint practices against Philly, and myself and Greg Bedard have talked a lot about this. You know, there has been a lot of blitzing, and there was a lot of blitzing during camp and during the preseason. and you just left to wonder, well, is that because Zach Corr knows that blitzing is going to be a major part of this defense this year? Are the Patriots going to be as aggressive as they were in the postseason when they're blitzing like 40 freaking percent of the time, if not more? And I'm just watching this play out. I'm watching the preseason games and I'm watching those joint practices.

Starting point is 00:15:40 and it left me with the question, are they just getting ready to spin the dial even more in 2026? To be even more aggressive, to be even more exotic. And that leads me to something that Andrew Callahan wrote in The Herald recently. And by the way, we're scheduled to have Andrew Callahan on the next podcast episode, so you want to check that out. But Andrew wrote, two opposing.

Starting point is 00:16:10 coaches who have studied the Patriots this summer have already suggested to me, Zach Core must get exotic with his blitz package to generate any kind of pressure. There you have it, right? And it's a very tough balance. You know, Core has to figure out how to be creative while balancing the risk, reward, and also giving the defensive backfield a shot to compete and a shot to make some plays. And so if you marry what Andrew Callahan wrote and you think about what I just said about how the Patriots defense has approached this camp in the preseason games, you marry those two things together. And it seems pretty clear.

Starting point is 00:16:57 This figures to be an incredibly aggressive defense. And maybe that's why the Patriots are not as concerned about the edge position as I am and as many of you are. maybe they're looking at this and saying we don't need like two or three really good edge players because we're going to do something different this year we're going to bring the smoke a little bit more we're going to be ultra aggressive we're going to play a ton of man coverage even more than people might anticipate us playing but when you try to cover up the weaknesses of that four man pass rush it leads to other weaknesses and so it's going to be Zach Kor's job if the Patriots are going to be ultra aggressive, can he do a good enough job of covering up the weaknesses

Starting point is 00:17:46 of your linebackers in coverage, for example? Can you do that and be aggressive? We saw multiple times in the preseason games where the Patriots were aggressive, they sent blitzes, and they got beaten the flats easily. Look completely lost at points. Now, of course, we point out, those were the twos and the threes playing in those preseason games. So maybe you wouldn't look at as bad if it's the ones out there and you are aggressive and maybe you don't give up a bunch of chunk plays or touchdowns in the flat. But it's a question, right? Can Zach Corr find that balance?

Starting point is 00:18:22 Can he be aggressive and send the blitzes and be exotic but not, you know, leave his guys hanging out there to dry? Another question is, can this defense consistently stop the run? With Milton Williams and Robert Spillane last year, when they were both healthy, this defense was good against the run. But remember, they also had a healthy Harold Landry for the first five plus weeks. And Landry is good against the run. What have we seen in camp? What have we seen in the preseason games? Inconsistencies in the run defense. Can Zach Corr and the rest of his staff straighten that out? We've seen still some trouble with the defense handling,

Starting point is 00:19:06 running backs that bounce runs to the outside. And I don't even want to bring up his name, but Kenneth Walker. The honeymoon is over for Zach Corp. I mean, he had a great run as the season went on last year, and he exceeded all expectations given the circumstances. But now the NFL, they have film on Zach Corp, and what he calls on the defensive side. And teams are going to adjust to what Zach Corr does, and it's going to be up to core to adjust to those adjustments. And does he do that well enough? He has a lot of experience around him with Mike Frable and Terrell Williams. But when those bullets are flying, play to play on a football Sunday or for week one

Starting point is 00:19:50 on a football Wednesday night, is Zach Corp capable of adjusting against those adjustments made on him? And can they figure out the red zone? Can they figure out a way to be at least a bend don't break defense a la years ago with Bill Belichick? But there are a lot of questions. we look at Josh McDaniels, we know who Josh McDaniels is, what he brings to the table. He's been in the league long enough.

Starting point is 00:20:22 He's adjusted to adjustments and adjusted to more adjustments, adjustment, adjustment, adjustment, but Zach Corr, this is the first time. They got film on him and what he likes to do. He does not have ultra talented edges unless we're completely wrong about what they have in that room. I don't think we are. And he's going to have a lot of other challenges like red zone defense and run defense to put on top of the pass rush. and what offenses are doing to attack him as a play caller. All right, let's end on a high note.

Starting point is 00:20:53 Because I am as bullish on this offensive line than I have been in years. It's coming up next. This is Lockdown Patriots, part of the Lockdown Podcast Network, your team every day. You know, it's that time of year. My wife loves pumpkin spice. I love college football. And college football Saturdays are already packed with reasons to get excited.

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Starting point is 00:22:25 Give us a like. Throw a comment in as well. I want your thoughts on the Christian Gonzalez negotiation and how that is going to impact the rest of this team and especially next offseason. So don't forget to like. Don't forget to comment and don't forget to subscribe. All right. After free agency, I had said the Patriots offensive line on paper was improved. and when we went through the 53 man rosters, the initial 53 man rosters, and compared 25 to 26, I had said the offensive line is better.

Starting point is 00:22:59 And I don't have much doubt about that. But I also wanted to see how much better they could be and how good could this O line be. And I had to see it in camp. And I'm telling you, I feel good about this offensive line, including the depth, which I did not feel great about two or three weeks,

Starting point is 00:23:17 ago. Let's start with your left tackle. Will Campbell had a good, if not very good camp. And yeah, he lost a couple of times. But on the balance of the entire camp, Will Campbell was really good. And we saw a stronger frame, which means stronger anchor. We saw improved technique. We saw versatility within that improved technique. I'm not telling you he's going to be great in 2026, but heading into week one, there's not much to be worried about by what you saw during camp from your left tackle. And we'll see if he can carry that into this season.

Starting point is 00:24:02 But we're talking about right now. And right now I feel good, if not really good about Campbell. How about Jared Wilson? Again, on paper, it felt like the smart move. and the move that you almost had to make, pushing Jared Wilson from left guard back to his natural position of center. Wilson has also had a good to very good camp. I thought Wilson had a really good week against the Eagles,

Starting point is 00:24:28 all things considered, especially that level of competition he was facing. And the comfort level is there. And when you are comparing Jared Wilson to Garrett Bradbury, Wilson is bigger. He's not a huge dude, but he's bigger than Bradbury. and he's absolutely more athletic than Garrett Bradbury. So that strong week against the Eagles makes me feel pretty confident that Wilson is just going to get better and better as this season goes on.

Starting point is 00:24:57 Michael Wenu, I feel like he's just always overlooked. And the headlines of like every camp for a Wenu is like, oh, well, he's out of shape, he's got to get in shape. I think Owenu is in a great spot. I mean, he seems to be in a great spot. He redid his deal, no issues, no bickering, no back and forth, took care of business, walked out onto the field, and he had a very solid camp. And it's great to see because he's coming off the best two months of his career last year in 2025. And so that's the best we've seen, Owenu.

Starting point is 00:25:34 He goes into the offseason, he comes back, and he has a very solid camp, and he is walking into a contract year. is going to be an unrestricted free agent once this season is over. I'm just figuring Michael Wenu is plenty motivated enough. If he wants that next big fat contract, he's got to play well. I feel really good about Michael Wenow. Now Morgan Moses, I mean, I guess you could say he's a question mark because he was managed so heavily during this camp. But let's say Morgan Moses gives you like 85 to 90% of what he gave you last year.

Starting point is 00:26:11 that's more than good enough as a starting right tackle. If he can give you 85 to 90%, you're in good shape. The biggest question, if you're going off camp, is actually Elijah Vera Tucker. And I thought that AVT would be the least of your worries. But, you know, coming out of this camp, he really is the biggest question mark. He was more down than up the last two weeks of camp. He was not very strong against the Eagles. He had some big time issues against those bigger.

Starting point is 00:26:41 guys up front. Now, if I were a betting man, I would bet on the natural traits, which are just out of this world, and I would bet on him eventually knocking the rust off. But if you told me before camp, Elijah Vera Tucker would be your biggest question coming out of camp, I would have looked at you like, hey, man, you know, take 10 seconds to think about this. Give it some time. or I would have said if Elijah Verit Tucker is like the biggest question then I mean how bad did he did he you know decline but here we are I mean I think the biggest question coming out of this camp is you know of course Moses with the management but I think it's Verit Tucker can he get back too close to the level of the player he was before the latest triceps

Starting point is 00:27:34 tear can he get back to that guy again I'm going to bet on the traits and I'm going to bet on him knocking off the rust, and I'm going to bet on him figuring it out to the point where he'll at least be good this year. And the Pats, I said at the beginning of this segment, if we were talking two weeks ago and we were talking two weeks ago, if you've been following us, I appreciate you, had a lot of questions about the backup, you know, depth of this offensive line, especially on the interior. But I think the Patriots have done a good job addressing that depth. I really do. I mean, I think they did a really good job of signing Greg Van Routen, who is, to me, your best interior backup, going out and trading for Walter Rouse, a guy who

Starting point is 00:28:21 has played tackle, a guy who has played guard this preseason. So he has that versatility. I mean, even somebody like Jake Kubas, who has NFL experience that can play multiple positions on the interior, even signing him to your practice squad. You know, those additions of Van Routen and Rouse and kubas. That's a good job by this front office of going out and helping your football team. And then we find out that Ben Brown is going to be healthy for week one. So, you know, the backup tackle, you know, Walter Rouse again, do they see him as a guard? They see him as a tackle.

Starting point is 00:28:56 I think probably more tackle since they have Van Routen. They've got that insurance. But backup tackle might be a little shaky because of the youth with Caleb Lomu and Demetrius Crownover. But I would say just hold the full. fort down until like week five and hopefully you get Marcus Bryant back and Marcus Bryant actually had a good camp. So, you know, I know he had a tough week against the Eagles when he was, you know, playing right tackling all of that. But again, on balance, if you're looking at from

Starting point is 00:29:25 the beginning to the end, Marcus Bryant had a pretty good camp. So I am feeling better about this offensive line than I have felt in a long time about those guys up front. It's been years since I felt this good about the five in front of Drake May, and I feel good again about what they did addressing the depth. That wraps up this edition of Lockdown Patriots. Reach out to me on Twitter at Nick C. Radio. Don't forget to like, comment, and subscribe on YouTube. And if you're watching us on YouTube, go and check out the Lockdown NFL 24-7 stream. It's the first of its kind. And you can also check out Lockdown Fantasy Football with Fabs and Marcus for your daily fantasy football info. Everybody Have a fantastic day, and we'll catch up with you next time.

Locked On Patriots - Daily Podcast On The New England Patriots - Shockwave: Christian Gonzalez Extension Failure Will Shake Patriots' Plans

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