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Tony Gonzalez

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Tony Gonzalez
refer to caption
Tony Gonzalez poses with two U.S. Naval commanders prior to the kickoff of the 2005 NFL Pro Bowl.
Kansas City Chiefs
Career information
College:California
NFL draft:1997 / round: 1 / pick: 13
Career history
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics as of Week 1, 2008
Receptions:835
Receiving Yards:10,011
Touchdowns:67
Stats at Pro Football Reference Edit this at Wikidata

Anthony "Tony" David Gonzalez[1] (born February 27, 1976 in Huntington Beach, California) is an American football tight end for the Kansas City Chiefs of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Chiefs in the first round (13th overall pick) of the 1997 NFL Draft out of the University of California

While majoring in Communications at California, Gonzalez played in 33 games for the California Golden Bears football team, recording eighty–nine receptions for 1,302 yards with eight touchdowns.[2] He also played in 82 games for the the California Golden Bears basketball team, averaging 6.4 points and 4.3 rebounds per game.[2]

Gonzalez, a nine-time Pro Bowl selection, currently holds the NFL records for most single season receptions (102) by a tight end, most career touchdowns by a tight end (67), and most career receptions by a tight end (831).

High school career

Gonzalez attended Huntington Beach High School in Huntington Beach, California, where he lettered in football, baseball, and basketball.

Gonzalez excelled at both football and basketball. As a senior, he caught 62 passes for 9045 yards and 13 touchdowns and was a first-team All America selection at both tight end and linebacker. Playing basketball, he was named Orange County and Sunset League MVP as he averaged 26 points per game.[2]

After his senior year, Gonzalez shared the Orange County High School Athlete of the Year along with golfer Tiger Woods. [3]

College career

Gonzalez chose to attend the University of California, where he majored in communications and played both football and basketball.[2]

As a member of the California Golden Bears football team, he played tight end under future NFL coach Steve Mariucci.[2] His junior year was one of the best seasons of all time for a Division I tight end, as he caught 46 passes for 699 yards and 5 touchdowns. Gonzalez was also an All-Pac-10 and All-American selection.

Gonzalez also continued his basketball career at Cal. His junior year he played in 28 games, averaging 6.8 points and 5.4 rebounds per game as California made it to the Sweet sixteen of the NCAA Basketball Tournament.[2]

Gonzalez decided to forfeit his final year of eligibility at University of California to declare for the NFL Draft.

NFL career

1997 NFL draft

Gonzalez was rated as one of the top tight ends in the 1997 NFL Draft, and was considered a top 15 selection. The Chiefs had decided to draft Gonzalez, but were unlikely to be able to draft him with their 18th overall pick. The Chiefs thus traded up with the Houston Oilers to get the number 13 selection and draft Gonzalez.[4]

Kansas City Chiefs

Gonzalez began his career in 1997. He finished his rookie season with 33 receptions, two touchdowns and a blocked punt on special teams, helping the Chiefs to finish with the best record in the American Football Conference (AFC). In the 1998 season, Gonzalez saw dramatic improvements with 59 receptions for 621 yards, and also caught two touchdown passes for the second consecutive year.

In 1999 season saw Gonzalez again improving when he caught 76 passes for 849 yards and a career high 11 touchdown receptions, earning his first Pro Bowl selection. From the 2000 to 2006, Gonzalez was the most productive tight end in the NFL. During this time he averaged 79 receptions, 968 yards, and 6.5 touchdowns per season and was elected to the Pro Bowl every year. His best season statistically came in 2004, when he caught an NFL record (for a tight end) 102 passes for 1,258 yards and seven touchdowns.

In 2007, Gonzalez continued his productivity in spite of the generally poor play of the Chiefs' offense. Though the Chiefs finished at or near the bottom in most major offensive categories, Gonzalez led the Chiefs and all NFL tight ends in receptions (99) and receiving yards (1,172) while being named to his ninth straight Pro Bowl.

Starting late in the 2006, Gonzalez began to close in on numerous team and league receiving records. In 2006, Gonzalez broke wide receiver Otis Taylor's Chiefs team receiving yards and touchdowns mark, and also passed running back Priest Holmes for the team yards from scrimmage record. On October 14, 2007, Gonzalez broke the career touchdown reception record for tight ends previously held by Shannon Sharpe,[5] as well as passing Ozzie Newsome for second in career receiving yards for a tight end. On December 23, 2007, Gonzalez recorded his third season with 1,000 receiving yards, tying him with Kellen Winslow, Todd Christensen and Shannon Sharpe for most ever by a tight end, and on December 30, 2007, Gonzalez passed Shannon Sharpe for most receptions all time by a tight end.[6]

Personal life

In early 2007, Gonzalez suffered a bout of facial paralysis known as Bell's palsy, which caused him to focus his attention on health and nutrition. Gonzalez subsequently experimented with veganism after reading The China Study, by Cornell professor and nutrition researcher T. Colin Campbell[7], but he and his nutritionist ultimately decided that eating some meat would be best for his performance.[8] On July 3, 2008, while dining with his family at Capone's Restaurant in Huntington Beach, California, Gonzalez noticed fellow diner Ken Hunter choking on a piece of meat at a nearby table, unable to breathe. Gonzalez successfully administered the Heimlich Maneuver to Hunter, saving his life. After the incident, it was revealed that Hunter was a San Diego Chargers fan, which are a rivalry team of the Chiefs in the AFC West.[9]

Acting credits

Records

League records

  • Receptions in a single season for a tight end (102, 2004 season)
  • Career receptions for a tight end (816 as of December 30, 2007)
  • Career receiving touchdowns for a tight end (66 as of December 30, 2007)
  • Most seasons with 1,000+ receiving yards by a tight end (3)

Team records

  • Career receptions (820 as of December 30, 2007)
  • Career receiving yards (9681 as of December 23, 2007)
  • Career receiving touchdowns (66 as of December 23, 2007)
  • Career yards from scrimmage (9695 as of December 23, 2007)
  • Consecutive games with a reception (114 as of December 23, 2007)

Career statistics

NFL

Year Team G Rec Yds Avg Lng TD FD
1997 Kansas City Chiefs 16 33 368 11.2 30 2 21
1998 Kansas City Chiefs 16 59 621 10.5 32 2 33
1999 Kansas City Chiefs 15 76 849 11.2 73 11 47
2000 Kansas City Chiefs 16 93 1203 12.9 39 9 66
2001 Kansas City Chiefs 16 73 917 12.6 36 6 49
2002 Kansas City Chiefs 16 63 773 12.3 42 7 39
2003 Kansas City Chiefs 16 71 916 12.9 67 10 48
2004 Kansas City Chiefs 16 102 1258 12.3 32 7 69
2005 Kansas City Chiefs 16 78 905 11.6 39 2 45
2006 Kansas City Chiefs 15 73 900 12.3 57 5 54
2007 Kansas City Chiefs 16 99 1172 11.8 31 5 59
Total 174 820 9,882 12.1 73 66 530

References

  1. ^ "Gonzalez on Pro-Football-Reference". rbref.com. Retrieved 2007-12-21.
  2. ^ a b c d e f "Tony Gonzalez, #88, Tight End, Kansas City Chiefs". Retrieved 2008-08-21. Cite error: The named reference "Tony Gonzalez, #88, Tight End, Kansas City Chiefs" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  3. ^ "Tony Gonzalez". NFL.com. Retrieved 2007-10-22.
  4. ^ Tucker, Doug (1997-04-19). "Chiefs grab Gonzalez with first pick". Retrieved 2008-08-20.
  5. ^ Weiberg, Steve (2007-10-14). "Gonzalez grabs TD record as Chiefs get back to .500". USA TODAY. Retrieved 2008-08-21.
  6. ^ "Gonzalez breaks tight ends record for most catches". Associated Press. 2007-12-30. Retrieved 2008-08-21.
  7. ^ Albergotti, Reed (2008-01-25). "The 247 lb. Vegan". The Wall Street Journal Online. Retrieved 2008-08-20.
  8. ^ New Information about NFL’s Tony Gonzalez
  9. ^ "Chiefs' Gonzalez saves man from choking to death". Associated Press. 2008-07-08. Retrieved 2008-08-20.

Template:2008 Pro Bowl AFC Starters

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