The Washington Commanders have re-signed another talented player, who stepped in after a series of injuries and roster changes, helping the team reach the NFC Championship game. He also garnered national attention for playing through obsessive-compulsive disorder.
The contract is for the 2025 NFL season and has a value of $1.17 million, the league minimum salary, according to a source familiar with the agreement. The source spoke to The Associated Press on the condition of anonymity as financial details were not publicly shared.
He successfully made 7 out of 8 field goals during the playoff run, following a regular-season performance of 5 out of 7. His most notable moment came with a game-winning, buzzer-beating field goal in the wild-card round at Tampa Bay, which secured Washington’s first playoff win in nearly 20 years.
“The organization is amazing, the coaching staff’s amazing,” Gonzalez said in January about his time with the Commanders. “It’s just truly been awesome, and I’m just incredibly grateful for the whole organization, honestly, as a whole. Everybody here is truly, truly amazing people. They got something special going, and I’m just happy to be a part of it and do my little part.”
Gonzalez, who will turn 30 in May, joined the Washington Commanders in November when kicker Austin Seibert was sidelined with a hamstring injury. Seibert later suffered a groin injury, and Gonzalez took over, playing in all but one game for the remainder of the season.
Now with his fourth team since entering the league in 2017, Gonzalez was flawless on extra points, making all 27 attempts. He earned high praise from head coach Dan Quinn, who described him as “a true pro,” as well as from teammates, for his ability to handle every situation with composure.
“He’s about as low maintenance as they come in terms of he just has such a great attitude when he’s kicking,” holder and punter Tress Way said. “There’s times I’ll ask him, I’m like, ‘What’d you think on the hold there?’ And he’s like, ‘I don’t even remember. Once it’s down, we’re rolling.’ It’s fun to play with a guy like that and to be working with a guy like that, and somebody who truly means it. He just trusts (long snapper Tyler Ott) and I to get everything ready, and he has just a great attitude and a great mentality for it.”
Gonzalez went viral when TV cameras captured him repeatedly adjusting his sock and running his fingers through his hair before making the 37-yard field goal that defeated the Buccaneers in prime time. A few days later, he opened up about his obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), hoping that sharing his experience could help others facing similar challenges.
“There’s all sorts of people that walk through life dealing with struggles on a day-to-day (basis), and a lot of it’s at home that people don’t see: For example, like last night resetting my alarm about 100 times making sure it’s OK kind of gets on my wife’s nerves a little bit, but at times it’s just kind of how it goes,” Gonzalez said. “Just hearing other people’s stories and stuff that they deal with along those lines, it’s always interesting to hear, and it’s been pretty neat to see the community come together and just kind of helping you out a little bit.”
Gonzalez is currently the only kicker on the roster with free agency set to begin next week. Meanwhile, the Commanders have already made a significant offensive move to support Offensive Rookie of the Year quarterback Jayden Daniels, acquiring wide receiver Deebo Samuel from San Francisco in exchange for a fifth-round pick.
General manager Adam Peters still has over $60 million in cap space to work with, and there are ongoing questions about whether Washington will re-sign key free agent veterans, such as tight end Zach Ertz and six-time All-Pro linebacker Bobby Wagner.
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