Mike Vrabel reveals Christian Gonzalez's status for mandatory minicamp

After skipping out on voluntary OTAs, New England Patriots cornerback Christian Gonzalez showed up to mandatory minicamp.

Patriots coach Mike Vrabel confirmed the news on Tuesday.

“Everybody under contract is here and accounted for,” Vrabel said when speaking with media members.

There has been no confirmation on how much Gonzalez will participate in the three scheduled practices with the team. Vrabel noted that it wouldn’t be fair to rush players who had been away to full participation. Part of the practices will be evaluating where everybody is currently in their preparation.

“We want to be smart with everybody that we have,” said Vrabel. “For the guys that we haven’t seen, I think it’s only right to make sure that they’re where everybody else is based on how we practice.”

Gonzalez recorded 69 combined tackles to go along with 10 pass deflections over the course of 14 games last year. Although he did not record an interception, he still proved to be a lockdown cornerback for the Patriots’ secondary. Throughout the playoffs, particularly at Super Bowl LX, he looked like one of the best defensive backs in the NFL.

Gonzalez is in the final year of his rookie contract, but the Patriots have picked up his fifth-year option, which they could exercise to keep him through the 2027 season. The ultimate goal for the team is to reach an agreement on a long-term extension with the former All-Pro corner.

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This article originally appeared on Patriots Wire: Mike Vrabel reveals Christian Gonzalez’s status for mandatory minicamp