Less than 48 hours away from the start of the 2026 NFL season, the second domino in the cornerback market has fallen.
The New England Patriots and All-Pro Christian Gonzalez have agreed to a 4-year, $135 million contract extension with $102 million in guarantees, according to NFL insider Jordan Schultz on Monday night.
After the Seattle Seahawks and Devon Witherspoon agreed to a four-year, $132 million ($101 million guaranteed) extension that made him the highest-paid cornerback in football, it was a matter of time until the Pats and Gonzalez followed suit and topped that figure — and despite some concern that a deal wouldn’t get done before the season opener, they now have come to an agreement.
The extension comes over a month after Patriots owner Robert Kraft told media the team had offered Gonzalez a cornerback-record deal. Gonzalez held off on signing that contract offer, with the assumption being he was waiting out Seattle Seahawks cornerback Devon Witherspoon, who was also in line to sign a mega-deal at the time.
Both Witherspoon and Gonzalez have emerged as bona fide stars at the position since they were taken in the 2023 NFL Draft, with Witherspoon selected fifth overall and Gonzalez coming off the board at pick 17.
Gonzalez, who missed most of his rookie season through injury, has gone on to be a Pro Bowler and earn a second-team All-Pro nod in 2024. Witherspoon, meanwhile, has been named a Pro Bowler in each of his three seasons and earned second-team All-Pro honors a year ago.
Witherspoon’s tenure as the league’s highest-paid cornerback was short-lived, but with the All-Pro cemented in Seattle for the foreseeable future, that reality suits the Seahawks just fine.
Any thought of Gonzalez holding out of the Seahawks game can also be put to rest. The two most expensive corners in the NFL will both be on the field come Sept. 9.
