Commanders’ Zane Gonzalez on his OCD after game-winning kick: “This is who I am and what I’m going through.”
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Commanders’ Zane Gonzalez on his OCD after game-winning kick: “This is who I am and what I’m going through.”

Posted on by Amelia Pressman

When Washington Commanders kicker Zane Gonzalez walked onto the field at Raymond James Stadium to attempt a game-winning kick, his OCD was on display for a national television audience.

The 29-year-old Gonzalez, who is on his sixth NFL team, alternated between fixing his hair and tapping his helmet against his head. Minutes before he kicked a 37-yard field goal to send the Commanders to the divisional round against the Detroit Lions, he repeatedly took off his cleats, adjusted his socks and put them back on.

Many who watched the game at home thought it was superstition or routine – something we see in many athletes. But this was more than just that from the Commanders’ kicker.

“If anything, it upsets my wife and my family more than it upsets me,” Gonzalez said of the attention, via Nicki Jhabvala of The Washington Post. “I’m used to it. … Anyone who knows me or has seen me perform has seen me do it a million times. I learned that being on such a big stage on Sunday night and winning the game gets a little more attention. It’s who I am and it’s what I’m going through, and most of all I realize how crazy it looks to do this. I am aware of this. But at the same time, there’s nothing you can do about it.”

Gonzalez, who learned about his OCD as a child, has been public about his condition since his freshman year at Arizona State University. During his first NFL season in 2017, he told ESPN: “It makes you a perfectionist and more detail-oriented. Off the field it’s a pain in the ass.”

While it’s something that affects his life on and off the soccer field – like having to touch the bottom of the cups he uses – Gonzalez has adapted his daily life to deal with his OCD and make it a part of him Preparing for games and doing kicks.

“I’m trying to do a few things to keep it as under the radar as possible, just understand, get it done and do whatever gets me mentally prepared to go on the field,” Gonzalez said. “The helmet thing is literally the last thing I do.”

Before this season, Gonzalez had not played in the NFL since his time with the Carolina Panthers in 2021. He suffered another quad injury that kept him out of the 2022 NFL season. He was then traded to the San Francisco 49ers in March 2023 and had to stay off the field again due to an injury.

Zane Gonzalez and the Washington Commanders will face the Detroit Lions in the NFL Division Round on Saturday evening. (Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)Zane Gonzalez and the Washington Commanders face the Detroit Lions in the NFL Division Round on Saturday evening. (Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)

Zane Gonzalez and the Washington Commanders face the Detroit Lions in the NFL divisional round on Saturday evening. (Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)

The Commanders signed Gonzalez to their practice squad on November 8, and he later assumed starting duties after Austin Seibert was placed on injured reserve with a hip injury. He is one of seven kickers the team has signed since March and one of four to have made a field goal for the team this season.

Gonzalez went 5 of 7 on field goals and 19 of 19 on extra points during the regular season with the Commanders and made three field goals in the win over the Buccaneers.

In a season that saw him coach for eight teams before signing with the Commanders, Gonzalez is now experiencing hero status in Washington as the team is just two wins away from a Super Bowl appearance.

“It’s a journeyman lifestyle,” Gonzalez said. “It’s hard, but at the end of the day I’m doing what I love doing.”

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