At 11:30 a.m. ET on Sunday, it became official. Two full months after sustaining a hamstring injury, Christian Gonzalez was set to make his season debut against the Carolina Panthers. The New England Patriots’
standout cornerback was not listed among the inactive, paving the way for his first in-game snaps since last season.
One big question nonetheless remained: how would the 23-year-old look in his first game removed from the nagging injury? While he admitted there was some rust to be shaken off, he generally looked like his usual self — a fact also reflected in his snap count number.
Gonzalez was on the field for 49 of a possible 69 snaps against the Panthers, a playing time share of 71% that had him tied for third most on the team. While that percentage might be smaller than his usual output as an every-down defender, his recovery process or the need to acclimate to game speed seems to have nothing to do with it. Instead, New England decided to give Gonzalez and other starters on both sides of the ball a breather with the game turning into a blowout down the stretch.
As for his time on the field, Gonzalez was credited with two receptions surrendered on three targets for a combined 31 yards. He also had three tackles. All things considered, his comeback can be seen as a successful one.
Here is our full snap count report from the Patriots’ 42-13 win at Gillette Stadium.
Offense
Total snaps: 49 | Time on the field: 23:55
LG Ben Brown (49; 100%), C Garrett Bradbury (49; 100%), RG Mike Onwenu (49; 100%), QB Drake Maye (43; 88%), LT Will Campbell (43; 88%), RT Morgan Moses (43; 88%), TE Hunter Henry (37; 76%), WR Kayshon Boutte (34; 69%), TE Austin Hooper (32; 65%), WR Stefon Diggs (31; 63%), RB Rhamondre Stevenson (28; 57%), WR Mack Hollins (24; 49%), RB TreVeyon Henderson (15; 31%), WR Kyle Williams (14; 29%), FB/TE Jack Westover (11; 22%), RB Antonio Gibson (9; 18%), LT/TE Vederian Lowe (8; 16%), WR DeMario Douglas (8; 16%), RT Marcus Bryant (6; 12%), QB Joshua Dobbs (6; 12%)
*denotes starter
The Patriots showed that the confidence they expressed in Rhamondre Stevenson was not just lip service. Despite losing a pair of fumbles against the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 3, the veteran was the first man up at running back and finished as his position group’s leader in snaps (28) and carries (9). Behind him, TreVeyon Henderson and Antonio Gibson continued playing their usual rotational roles.
Whereas Stevenson continues to be heavily featured despite his recent issues, the same cannot be said for DeMario Douglas. For the first time all season, he saw his snaps reach single digits (8) while he was not targeted all day. With the Patriots continuing to rely heavily on two-tight sets, other wide receivers are getting top billing over the third-year man.
The primary benefactor of that development is veteran Stefon Diggs, who had his most active game as a Patriot against Carolina in both playing time (63%) and production (6 catches for 101 yards). Diggs also led the team in slot snaps (13) ahead of Hunter Henry (10), Douglas (8) and Mack Hollins (5).
Due to the blowout nature of the game, the Patriots also gave some of their backup options an opportunity. That included offensive tackle Vederian Lowe, who besides entering the game late as a replacement left tackle for Will Campbell also took the field as a jumbo tight end on two occasions. A reminder that Lowe caught a touchdown from Drake Maye last year playing a similar role.
Defense
Total snaps: 69 | Time on the field: 33:21
S Craig Woodson (68; 99%), LB Robert Spillane (51; 74%), ED Harold Landry III (49; 71%), CB Christian Gonzalez (49; 71%), CB Carlton Davis III (49; 71%), ED Keion White (42; 61%), DT Milton Williams (40; 58%), LB Christian Elliss (39; 57%), S Jaylinn Hawkins (39; 57%), CB Marcus Jones (38; 55%), DT Christian Barmore (36; 52%), S Kyle Dugger (35; 51%), ED K’Lavon Chaisson (34; 49%), LB Jack Gibbens (31; 45%), DT Khyiris Tonga (27; 39%), CB Charles Woods (21; 30%), ED Anfernee Jennings (20; 29%), CB Alex Austin (20; 29%), DT Joshua Farmer (20; 29%), S Dell Pettus (18; 26%), LB Marte Mapu (16; 23%), DT Cory Durden (16; 23%), WR/S Mack Hollins (1; 1%)
*denotes starter
Just like they did on offense, the Patriots also decided to rotate their defensive personnel later in the game. This, in turn, allowed players like Charles Woods (21), Joshua Farmer (20) or Dell Pettus (18) to set new personal season marks in snaps.
Also in that category is Kyle Dugger, even though his uptick in snaps was mostly due to an injury higher up on the depth chart. With Jaylinn Hawkins leaving the game in the third quarter because of a hamstring issue, Dugger saw increased opportunities as the top safety alongside Craig Woodson and finished above 50% for the first time all year.
Speaking of firsts, Mack Hollins played his first defensive snap of the season on Sunday. The 6-foot-4 wide receiver entered the game on the final play of the first half to help defend a potential Hail Mary pass (that never came). For Hollins, this is not entirely unfamiliar territory: he already had five such snaps on his résumé from earlier in his career, with three of those, interestingly enough, coming against the Patriots.
Special teams
Total snaps: 28 | Time on the field: 2:44
LB Jack Gibbens (22; 79%), S Dell Pettus (22; 79%), S Brenden Schooler (22; 79%), LB Christian Elliss (20; 71%), ED Anfernee Jennings (17; 61%), LB/PP Marte Mapu (17; 61%), LB Darius Harris (16; 57%), CB Charles Woods (14; 50%), K Andy Borregales (13; 46%), ED Keion White (12; 43%), S Kyle Dugger (12; 43%), S Craig Woodson (10; 36%), P/H Bryce Baringer (10; 36%), LS Julian Ashby (10; 36%), ED K’Lavon Chaisson (9; 32%), FB Jack Westover (8; 29%), OT Will Campbell (6; 21%), OL Ben Brown (6; 21%), OL Mike Onwenu (6; 21%), OT Vederian Lowe (6; 21%), OT Marcus Bryant (6; 21%), OL Brenden Jaimes (6; 21%), TE Austin Hooper (6; 21%), DT Khyiris Tonga (6; 21%), CB Alex Austin (6; 21%), CB/PR Marcus Jones (5; 18%), DT Milton Williams (4; 14%), RB/KR TreVeyon Henderson (3; 11%), RB/KR Antonio Gibson (3; 11%), LB Robert Spillane (2; 7%), DT Joshua Farmer (1; 4%), DT Cory Durden (1; 4%), S Jaylinn Hawkins (1; 4%)
The Patriots’ special teams core — i.e. players used on all four return and coverage units — saw a change on Sunday. While Brenden Schooler, Jack Gibbens and Anfernee Jennings continued playing those prominent roles, Dell Pettus joined them for the first time all season; he added punt coverage to his duties against the Panthers.
Rounding out the top four were Marte Mapu, who did not participate in kickoff coverage last week versus Pittsburgh but was back for seven snaps versus Carolina, as well as practice squad call-up Darius Harris. The latter, who reverted back on Monday, effectively filled the role held by Mark Robinson over the first three weeks of the season; Robinson departed last week to join the New York Jets’ 53-man team.
The Patriots also gave their “gray team” a heavy run on Sunday. A punt return unit with more of a defensive touch, it featured the likes of Milton Williams, Khyiris Tonga, K’Lavon Chaisson and Keion White. That crew also was on the field for Marcus Jones’ 87-yard punt return touchdown.
Did not play
N/A
Unlike the first three games of the season, the Patriots used the entirety of their game day roster versus Carolina. With the game effectively decided by the start of the fourth period, Mike Vrabel decided to insert backup quarterback Joshua Dobbs for the first time all year with 10:17 left to play.
Inactive
QB3 Tommy DeVito, DT Eric Gregory, OL Jared Wilson, OL Caedan Wallace, WR Efton Chism III, ED Elijah Ponder
After having missed all three practices of the week due to ankle and knee injuries, the Patriots ruled starting left guard Jared Wilson out on Friday. His deactivation paired with Christian Gonzalez’s return are the only noteworthy changes to an inactives list that otherwise has now looked the same in back-to-back weeks.
