Before anybody loses their minds, I’m not saying Christian Gonzalez is Deion Sanders, but he’s about as close as we’re going to get.
Deion is Deion, and I’m not sure that there will be another player like him. But the move itself could be just as big for this team. Dallas could go get Gonzalez and I think it would transform the defense the way Deion Sanders did in 1995.
The more I think about this kind of move, the more I like it.
Dallas Knew Exactly What It Was Getting
When the Cowboys signed Deion, everyone knew what type of player Dallas was bringing in. He was already one of the best NFL players and a superstar. This wasn’t one of those deals the Cowboys like to do by bringing in a player who hasn’t lived up to their potential.
Deion Sanders had already won Defensive Player of the Year in San Francisco, where he had six interceptions and took three for touchdowns.
Christian Gonzalez isn’t on that level, yet, but he’s also not some random unproven player the Cowboys would be gambling on. He is a 24-year-old All-Pro and Pro Bowl player who can line up across from the best receivers in the league and limit their production.
I don’t need Gonzalez to come in and be Deion Sanders. I need him to come to Dallas and make the other team want to throw the ball somewhere else.
Look at the Rest of This Defense
I really start liking this idea when you picture what the secondary could look like.
Christian Gonzalez, DaRon Bland or Shavon Revel on the outside, Caleb Downs moving around being the chess piece he was drafted to be, and the rest of the secondary getting bumped down one spot on the depth chart feels like the correct spot for those players.
Then in front of them you would have Rashan Gary, Quinnen Williams, Kenny Clark, Donovan Ezeiruaku, Jaishawn Barham, and DeMarvion Overshown.
That’s a defense I can see causing issues on Sundays for opposing teams.
A corner doesn’t just fix one spot. If he’s good enough, everybody around him gets a little more freedom. Just like the atmosphere Deion created.
Alright, Deion Wins This Part
Let’s have a little fun.
Interceptions? Deion Sanders and it’s not even close.
We will use Deion Sanders’ first three seasons for this exercise. With the Atlanta Falcons, he recorded 14 interceptions and three touchdowns. While Christian Gonzalez has accumulated three interceptions.
Deion Sanders also returned kicks and played some receiver. So, we won’t compare careers, just how important the trade was and how important the Gonzalez trade could be.
Christian Gonzalez does have one important quality that Deion didn’t have when he got to the Cowboys. That is age.
Gonzalez would be 24 years old and Deion Sanders was 28 when he became a Dallas Cowboy.
I know four years isn’t a big deal until you start thinking about how long Dallas could potentially have Christian Gonzalez. If he keeps developing, you might get five, six, seven years of high-level corner play.
That interests me.
You wouldn’t be trading for a guy hoping there’s one good season left. You could get him before he even hits his stride.
New England Would Be the Hang-Up
Here is the problem I see. The Patriots don’t have to do anything because they’ve already picked up Gonzalez’s fifth-year option through 2027, and they offered him a rumored massive contract that he turned down.
Here’s the silver lining part of this deal: Some think Christian Gonzalez is getting disgruntled with not being the highest paid corner in the NFL.
They don’t appear to be wanting to give him Devon Witherspoon type money..
I think there’s probably one more push by both sides to try and get a deal done before the season starts” ~
New England doesn’t seem to be too desperate, but Gonzalez seems to be getting upset.
To make this work, Dallas would have to offer something to get their attention. I don’t know exactly what would get the Patriots’ attention, but it would start with a 2027 first-round pick.
Something like the Trent McDuffie trade would be the groundwork for this deal. The Chiefs traded him to the Los Angeles Rams for two first round picks and two late round picks.
If that were to work, you still have to make Gonzalez the highest paid corner in the NFL and that could be the major hang up for the Cowboys.
But I think if it were to happen and Christian Gonzalez has an All-Pro season, no Cowboys fan out there is going to wonder what rookies they could have got with those draft picks.
This Used to Be a Jerry Jones Kinda Move
Do people remember that Dallas didn’t need Deion Sanders because they sucked and needed help becoming respectable?
The team then was already loaded after winning two Super Bowls. Then the 49ers beat them in the NFC Championship game en route to winning the Super Bowl. Jerry Jones basically said, “Alright, fine, we’ll just take Deion.
That is an old Jerry Jones kinda move.
Dallas knew it was close, so they went out and grabbed the best defensive player in the NFL.
I want to see that kinda move again. If this team wasn’t close, I would say keep the picks, but I think we are really close to getting over that decades-long drought.
Go get the guy who solves a major issue and don’t look back.
Was this helpful?
1 Comment