The Patriots agreed to a trade with the Chargers on Wednesday that will bring cornerback J.C. Jackson back to New England and the move appears to be tied to first-round pick Christian Gonzalez’s shoulder injury.
Gonzalez was injured in last Sunday’s blowout loss to the Cowboys and word on Monday was that he was set to miss time with a dislocated shoulder. Wednesday brings much worse news about the nature of his injury, however.
Ian Rapoport of NFL Media reports that Gonzalez suffered a torn labrum that will require surgery. The injury is likely to keep him out for the rest of the 2023 season.
Even if Jackson can recover the form that he’s been missing with the Chargers, it’s a major loss for the Patriots given how good Gonzalez has been right out of the gate of his NFL career. He was the defensive rookie of the month for September and the team has already suffered a number of other injuries to their cornerback corps during their 1-3 start to the year.