Based on where you look Oregon Ducks cornerback Christian Gonzalez has the potential to land with a number of different teams in the 2023 NFL Draft this April, all of them picking somewhere in the first round.
After his remarkable showing at the NFL Combine, and his impressive Pro Day in Eugene, Gonzalez has solidified himself as a first-round pick in the draft, and there’s a good chance that he finds himself being selected within the top 10 picks.
We’ve covered this extensively, going through mock draft round-ups every few weeks to get a sense of where Gonzalez is going to land. According to the latest mock draft from ESPN’s Mel Kiper, Gonzalez will indeed go to someone in the top 10, but it’s a team that we haven’t seen him get selected by thus far in the mock draft cycle.
Kiper has the Las Vegas Raiders grabbing Gonzalez with the No. 8 pick in the draft.
In this scenario, the Raiders don’t get any of the top four quarterbacks, forcing them to go with the best prospect available. They added the solid-but-unspectacular Jimmy Garoppolo in free agency, so it’s not like they have a void under center as big as the Colts, Texans and Panthers do. They also have a veteran roster, and you could argue they should try to win now.
The player who can most help them win in 2023 is Gonzalez, who ran a blazing 4.38-second 40-yard dash at the combine, backing up what I saw on his 2022 tape. At 6-foot-1, he has outstanding ball skills and elite recovery speed. This is a clear need area for Las Vegas.
The early run on quarterbacks will certainly impact how early Gonzalez goes in the draft, but at this point, it is fair to assume that he will find his way into the top 10, and continue the streak for the Ducks.
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