The New England Patriots were able to extend their win streak to six games on Sunday, defeating the Atlanta Falcons, 24-23, but it didn't come without some bumps and bruises. Christian Gonzalez had to depart Sunday's game in the fourth quarter with a head injury.

However, the Patriots' star cornerback quelled any concerns about his injury after the game.

“I just landed, hit my head. Gotta be careful with that. … I’m good,” Gonzalez told reporters after the game. “I would have come back in, but the offense did what they had to do, got a first down, and we didn’t have to go back on the field.”

Gonzalez suffered the injury when he contested a pass to Falcons wide receiver Drake London. As London was able to out-reach Gonzalez for the ball, the Patriots' star took a rapid fall to the turf, and his head hit the ground pretty hard. He appeared to be in some pain right away and was able to walk off the field.

That was the time that Gonzalez was seen in Sunday's game, but he remained on the Patriots' sideline for the final minutes. That meant he had to watch London make a touchdown grab that cut the Patriots' lead to 24-23 in the final minutes before the Falcons missed on the ensuing point-after attempt.

What Christian Gonzalez said of matchup vs. Drake London in Falcons-Patriots

While Gonzalez wasn't responsible for London's final touchdown grab, he didn't do too much to slow down the Falcons' star receiver on Sunday. London had nine catches for 118 yards and three touchdowns, with the play Gonzalez getting hurt on counting toward 40 of those yards.

Gonzalez tipped his cap to London on that play.

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“It was a good route. Good coverage,” Gonzalez said. “It’s two big-time players going to fight for the ball. He came down with it, but I’m glad we got the win.”

Gonzalez also saluted London for his overall performance, but he thought he got the Falcons receiver a couple of times, too.

“He’s a talented receiver like a lot of receivers in this league,” Gonzalez said. “We had our battles. He won a couple. I won a couple. That’s the nature of this position.”

Gonzalez was actually the Patriots' leading tackler on Sunday, which typically isn't the greatest sign for a cornerback. He finished with seven total tackles, six of which were solo, and three pass breakups.

After Gonzalez missed the first three games of the season due to a hamstring injury he suffered in July, he's largely looked like the version of himself that earned him second-team All-Pro honors last season. Gonzalez had allowed just 13 receptions on 24 targets for 123 passing yards this season before Sunday's game, per Pro Football Focus. Opposing quarterbacks had a 68.6 passer rating when targeting the receiver Gonzalez was covering.

The Patriots will need Gonzalez to play at that level moving forward if they want to continue their win streak and remain atop the AFC East. They take on one of the league's top passing games when they face the Tampa Bay Buccaneers next week. They also have games against the Cincinnati Bengals, Buffalo Bills, and Baltimore Ravens remaining on their schedule, and they'll almost certainly need Gonzalez to be at his best in those matchups, too.