Christian Gonzalez offered record-setting contract by Patriots, Kraft says

The New England Patriots have offered to make Christian Gonzalez the highest paid cornerback in the league, team owner Robert Kraft says.

Gonzalez was at the first day of training camp at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro on Saturday, even though he has yet to resolve his contract situation. He's eligible for an extension and analysts expect him to be paid among the NFL's top defensive backs.

"We love Christian Gonzalez. We love him as a player, as a person," Kraft told reporters. "That's why we made an offer to him that makes him the highest-paid player ever to play that position in the NFL, and coincidentally the highest contract in the Patriots franchise history."

Kraft declined to say if he's optimistic that a deal will get done with the young star.

"We're glad we drafted him and he was developed here and we hope he'll be with us for a long time," he said.

Gonzalez was a full participant in practice on Saturday. On the first play of 11-on-11 drills, he broke up a pass from quarterback Drake Maye to new wide receiver A.J. Brown. 

Maye told reporters after practice that despite the contract talks, the cornerback's main focus is clearly football.

"He's the best corner in the league in my opinion," Maye said. "Everybody was wondering, 'what's Gonzo going to do?' and he's coming out here, and first play, he's guarding A.J. in man coverage. So, that's the Patriots."