Proud of his Venezuelan roots, Andy Borregales has played a key role in the resurrection of the New England Patriots to one step away from the NFL Super Bowl. Next to him, in the locker room, is the Colombian Christian Gonzálezwho has also stood out on the team.
The Patriots, the great dynasty of this century in the NFL, completed their long and painful reconstruction until equaling the best record of the regular phase, with 14 wins and three losses.
On Sunday they will visit the Denver Broncos in the final of the American Conference in search of a ticket to the Super Bowl on February 8.
If the predictions come true, the Patriots can compete for the title for the first time since 2019, when they won their sixth ring with Tom Brady.
In the current squad there is no star like the legendary quarterback but there is a defense that has terrified its rivals this season with Christian González as a huge prop. The American cornerback, whose father is Colombian and mother Texan, is the only New England player selected for the All-Star Game (Pro Bowl).
The Caracas kicker
González is accompanied in the locker room this season by the Venezuelan Andy Borregalesfourth player from the South American country to reach the NFL.
The kicker was born in Caracas but when he was two years old his family moved to Miamiwhere he fell in love with American football under the wing of his older brother José.
While José was not drafted, the Patriots chose Andy Borregales in the sixth round this season after shining in his university stage with the Miami Hurricanes. He stood out with 94% effectiveness in his last course.
Borregales, 23 years old, took ownership in New England converting 84% of the field goals thrown (27-32) in the regular season. It also included a 54-yarder that gave them victory against the Buffalo Bills on September 29.
Now he is the only Venezuelan to compete in some playoffsin which he sports an immaculate 3-3 record. He dreams of representing his country of birth in the Super Bowl, although he has not returned since.
“At the end of the day, I was born in Venezuelathen I’m going to make it mine, as if I had lived there all my life,” he told ESPN in October.
“For the people of Colombia”
In his third season in the NFL, González completely cleared up doubts about his physique by accumulating 69 tackles and 10 passes defensed in 14 games. He did it under the new defensive system implemented by Mike Vrabel.
In the playoffs he was a wall in the divisional round victory against the Houston Texans (28-16) with nine tackles.
The 23-year-old cornerback emerged as one of the fundamental pieces of the rebirth of the Patriots, who had not achieved a playoff victory in the post-Brady era.
His landing has already generated attention from the night he was chosen in the 2023 Draft.
When his name was called in 17th place, González took the stage wearing a white jacket that he opened wide in front of the fans to show the colors of colombia printed inside.
“It’s (the flag) Colombian. It means everything. I’ve worn it for all the people of Colombia. I love that they can admire me,” he explained later.
González was born in Carrollton (Texas) into a family of athletes. His father, a native of Cali, played on the University of Texas basketball team.
His three sisters have represented Colombia in different athletics events. One of them, Melissa González, went on to compete in the 2021 Tokyo Olympics in the 400 meter hurdles.
