New England Patriots fans are wondering when top cornerback Christian Gonzalez will come back to the field after he exited the January 11 wild-card game against the Los Angeles Chargers due to a head injury. The 23-year-old Patriot suffered the injury during a play against Chargers wide receiver Quentin Johnston who fell on top of him. Gonzalez was taken back to the locker room before being ruled out for the remainder of the game. Fortunately, head coach Mike Vrabel has an update on when the cornerback might return and if he will be back in time for the upcoming AFC Divisional Game on Sunday, January 18.
When will Christian Gonzalez come back to the field?
Gonzalez is expected to return once he goes through the NFL concussion protocol, a five-step process that takes a median of nine days and can take anywhere from around seven days to three weeks, as noted by NBC Sports. So chances are low that he will return in time for the Patriots’ game against either the Steelers or Texans on Sunday.
After the game against the Chargers, Vrabel was uncertain on whether Gonzalez would be able to play within a week’s time. “Gonzo continues to play at a high level,” he said. “Those are the expectations he has for himself, and we have for him. He would be in the protocol. How long does that last? I don’t know, but when you don’t return to the game, they won’t let you back in the game.”
On Monday, January 12, Vrabel had a short update on The Greg Hill Show podcast. “I did talk to him. Yes. And so we’ll go through whatever the steps are that would require him to pass through whatever he needs to do,” the coach said. “So, without having seen him today. I can’t sit here and speculate. I just know that they wouldn’t let him go back in the game.”
According to reporter Zack Cox on X (formerly Twitter), Gonzalez said after the game that he couldn’t talk to media but felt “fine.”
The five-step “return-to-participation” protocol for NFL concussions have affected players go through (in order) symptom-limited activity like stretching and balance training, aerobic exercise, football-specific exercises, non-contact training drills, and then full football activity before being cleared.
NFL fans are also wondering how long 49er George Kittle will be out as well. Olympic hopeful Chloe Kim is facing a shoulder injury a month before 2026 Milano Cortina.
