Player Signing OFFICIAL - Gonzo signed to extension

[n1997y]

I was incorrect, Ross pointed out good.

This has a nice breakdown:

Inside the Christian Gonzalez deal

Here's the full breakdown of the new deal between the Patriots and their top corner.

www.nbcsports.com

Yes, that’s a much better breakdown. Ross was correct, I was being overly pessimistic in my interpretation of that first tweet, which was not really accurate either.

 

[Rob0729]

The big loser here is Adam Schefter. He was reporting as of yesterday that the two sides were far apart, the Pats weren’t anywhere close to Witherspoon’s contract, and the Pats were considering pulling out negotiations all together. This is egg on his face.

 

[Triumph]

 

[JoeSixPat]

full details

Christian Gonzalez Contract Details, Salary Cap Charges, Bonus Money, and Contract History | Over The Cap

Christian Gonzalez contract and salary cap details, including signing bonus, guaranteed salary, dead money, roster bonuses, and contract history

overthecap.com

Interesting - looks like if they did want to part ways with him they have a manageable $13 million dead money before the 2029 season if they cut him and half of that in 2030 with no dead money in 2031 (though that's when they'd probably renegotiate an extension even if he's not still the top CB.)

So still really a 4 year contract that they can get out of in 3 years if health or performance is an issue on top of next year's guaranteed $18 million. Seems like a good bet that he'll be productive through 2028.

And although they'd have to take the dead money hit if they didn't go beyond then, the organization itself would save $20 million if they pulled the plug on the earlier side.

 

[JoeSixPat]

Now that there's a general celebration that he's in the fold, I found this stat eye-popping in terms of who we've retained:

Opposing quarterbacks completed just 38.8 percent of their passes when targeting Gonzalez — the lowest rate allowed by any defender facing at least 25 targets during the postseason since 2018.

To put that in context, remember that Diggs had an 85% completion rate - obviously against guys other than Gonzo!

Of course the only way we'll face Diggs and see who is better at their jobs is if we meet Washington in the SB so I'll pull for that!

 

[mayoclinic]

Back in WA state, what will the reception be…

No reception(s), Gonzo will defend them all.

 

[Wozzy]

Of course the only way we'll face Diggs and see who is better at their jobs is if we meet Washington in the SB so I'll pull for that!

Washington’s offensive line is going to be pitiful, so I suspect they will suck again. The QB fanboys will say it’s because Jayden Daniels doesn’t have “it,” but football aficionados will know better.

 

[JoeSixPat]

Washington’s offensive line is going to be pitiful, so I suspect they will suck again. The QB fanboys will say it’s because Jayden Daniels doesn’t have “it,” but football aficionados will know better.

Yeah - my sister is a big DC fan and even they are in a "is Daniels the guy?" - which is also about his injury history but I think he's a winner if healthy. Yet if they don't give him an OL, it doesn't matter that they have Diggs and McLaurin - he won't have any time to throw. Still Daniels can run - which is good because he'll need to.

Heck, I even thought Daniels was the better QB than Maye in the draft - though DC is now jealous they didn't take him. Not that it would matter if they don't have an OL, but at least Maye can throw accurately on the run.

 

[n1997y]

Back in the spring when we first started speculating about what we all thought Gonzo's contract would look like the general consensus felt it would contain a $30+MM signing bonus, the AAV would be about $30+MM per year, and it would make him the highest paid CB at the time. So, after FOUR months of anguish, angst, consternation, and LOTS of name calling, we have a deal that looks ALOT like the deal that we talked about back in May, So, I have to ask WTF was all the drama about??

Basically, the deal is just marginally the same deal that Witherspoon got, only Gonzo gets about a Million more or about 3% more than Witherspoon. So, what made it this last this long. Why wasn't it done 3 days after Witherspoon got his That's what I don't get. All that angst to get pretty much exactly what we expected back in ****in' May. That's what I want to know.

My only guess is that the agents wanted to create some mechanism that would tie his compensation to any cap raises which would be game changing. After that I got nothing that would make any sense. Sometimes I wonder if both sides agreed to the deal weeks ago and kept it quiet so it would give the media and fans something to talk about,

I’ve highlighted the key phrase.

The agents have to demonstrate their value, to both current and prospective future clients. If it got done months ago everybody would think there was money left on the table. We’ve even had posts on here faulting the team for not signing in the Spring because it would’ve been cheaper. That would have been terrible for the agent’s reputation.

In a way it’s purely window dressing. Both sides knew it would get done, when it would get doe, and about what it would take to get it done. But the devil is in the details, so it got done at the deadline, as things mostly do.

 

[rkarp1]

Interesting - looks like if they did want to part ways with him they have a manageable $13 million dead money before the 2029 season if they cut him and half of that in 2030 with no dead money in 2031 (though that's when they'd probably renegotiate an extension even if he's not still the top CB.)

So still really a 4 year contract that they can get out of in 3 years if health or performance is an issue on top of next year's guaranteed $18 million. Seems like a good bet that he'll be productive through 2028.

And although they'd have to take the dead money hit if they didn't go beyond then, the organization itself would save $20 million if they pulled the plug on the earlier side.

his 2029 base salary, $23m, guarantee's on the 5th day of the 2028 season.
that was one of the "perks" the two sides were apart on.
it was never length, AAV or guaranteed money

 

[n1997y]

Next year? How about tomorrow, when the Pats give up a first down on defense (and imagine if Gonzalez gives up the completion?!), or when the Pats go incomplete on 3rd down on offense and have to punt.

How about a betting pool?

How many minutes after kickoff does the first post show up in the GDT proclaiming the season over and the sky fallen?

Or should the units be seconds not minutes?

 

[Wozzy]

I’ve highlighted the key phrase.

The agents have to demonstrate their value, to both current and prospective future clients. If it got done months ago everybody would think there was money left on the table. We’ve even had posts on here faulting the team for not signing in the Spring because it would’ve been cheaper. That would have been terrible for the agent’s reputation.

In a way it’s purely window dressing. Both sides knew it would get done, when it would get doe, and about what it would take to get it done. But the devil is in the details, so it got done at the deadline, as things mostly do.

For what it’s worth back in the spring I told everybody here this contract would be the very last one to get done and would come down to the wire.

It wasn’t because I saw into the future. It was simple economics. They had to build a team for 2026, the contract would have to fit around the team they built this year.

And here we are… all the worry worts and kvetching was for nothing.

 

[n1997y]

For what it’s worth back in the spring I told everybody here this contract would be the very last one to get done and would come down to the wire.

It wasn’t because I saw into the future. It was simple economics. They had to build a team for 2026, the contract would have to fit around the team they built this year.

And here we are… all the worry worts and kvetching was for nothing.

Exactly. Everybody asking why it couldn’t get done much early is just blind to the factors in play.

 

[Ross12]

Much has been said about how Vrabel likes to play zone, and Gonzo is a man corner, but they played a lot of man in the playoffs when the competition was at its toughest. I do kind of think that playing so much zone actually saved Gonzo's body from getting too beat up. He's prone to getting hurt but he generally had a fine year and he was 100% locked in playing his best football of his career when it counted. So, we may get frustrated at times when they're paying big bucks to Gonzo but yet in zone during the regular season, but there is likely a method to the madness.

For what it's worth, more zone defense may help in run defense as well, since that could be a bit of a sore spot this year.

 

[jdlboot14]

I love this deal! Very smart - it's like a 6 yr "contract" but really only a 2 years worth of gtd. $$. Only 1st 2 Yrs actually fully gtd. = $54M.
The rest isn't really "guaranteed" - it's based on Pats retaining him year by year. They were not going to get stuck in the debacle of Deshaun Watson. '27 and '28 are really only $18M gtd. each.
I feel much better about that - with Maye coming up.

 

[jdlboot14]

 

[TomPatriot]

What are the sports-radio fellas gonna discuss now? The game?

 

[mgteich]

Hmmm.

That payout schedule implies it replaces his current contract for this season and next, with a big raise for those years now fully guaranteed, and adds two more years each of which is guaranteed the previous year.

How could anyone believe that Gonzo signed a 2-year extension for more than $60M a year in new money?

 

[RobertWeathers]

He really is f-ing good.

 

[TheRainMaker]

Absolutely god awful song. And he bailed out Woodson on that first play. The game would’ve been over pretty quickly without him.