Antonio Gates inducted into Pro Football Hall of Fame: Tight end never even played college football

On Saturday, one of the largest extremities tight in the history of the NFL was inscribed in the temple of renown of professional football, while the former San Diego and Los Angeles Chargers Great Antonio Gates were welcomed in the fold on the sanctified ground of canton, Ohio.

Gates has accumulated 955 catches for 11,841 yards and 116 affected during his 16 -year career, figures that rank fourth, fourth and first of all time among tight, respectively, and 24, 31st and seventh ends among the players in any position. Eight times professional professional and triple first All-Pro team, Gates is perhaps one of the most unlikely in the history of football.

“It’s as if I told a fictional story,” Gates told the official charge of his trip. “To tell someone, he can come to the NFL and not play university football, then do the team … Then start … then do the pro Bowl and be all-pro of the second year … and then be the leader of all time … It’s not even a story that you can invent.”

As Gates himself noted, he did not even play university football. He spent his university career in eastern Michigan, the Seqouias college and Kent’s state to play basketball, with an average of 16.5 points and 7.8 rebounds per game while firing 50% on the field. Gates originally registered in Michigan State by wanting to play basketball under Tom Izzo and football under Nick Saban, but learned that Saban both wanted to play football and wanted to move him to defense, so he transferred.

Only 6 feet 4 inches, Gates was considered an undersized advantage and plus a “tweaner” by the NBA scouts, although it is an honorable mention for American honors while making an average of 20.6 points, 7.7 rebounds and 4.1 assists per night as a senior, after having helped Kent State to make a shocking race with the elite eight evening. Rather than entering the NBA project, Gates has set up training with NFL Scouts. It is not drafted, but signed with the loads as a free agent not drafted.

It didn’t take him for a long time to have an impact. Even as a recruit, Gates started as a third rod, but finally went up in the painting of the depths, and he caught 24 passes for 389 yards and two affected – impressive personalities for the very end of recruit at that time, not to mention the one who had not even played university football.

From the following year, Gates did one of the best races that a player had at any position. Each season from 2004 to 2011, Gates accumulated at least 700 reception yards and seven affected. Only nine other other players have never known eight seasons of this type during their career. These are Jerry Rice, Randy Moss, Terrell Owens, Marvin Harrison, Tony Gonzalez, Davante Adams, Mike Evans, Larry Fitzgerald and Cris Carter. This gives you an idea of the company’s guards.

During this eight-year period, Gates did the pro Bowl every season, the first All-Pro team three times and the second team twice. He ranked 12th throughout the league during the receptions, 11th under yards and second in towers, and checked the third, the third and the first among the extremities tight in each of these categories. He first associated himself with Drew Brees and then with Philip Rivers and became one of the most dominant tight ends of all time. The Ladainian Tomlinson also opening the way in the rear field, the charges have finished among the first five score offenses of each of these eight aforementioned seasons.

The background of Gates basketball made him an extraordinarily effective weapon in the red zone, where he regularly skiped and soaked on the defenders hoping to keep the ball out of his arms jumping. Among the tight ends, only Rob Gronkowski has experienced more seasons with two -digit scores – and none of the many lights already induced in the renowned temple has outlined it throughout their career.

“We have fully exploited our opponents with the way we used it in the red zone,” said the former coach of the Tim Brewster loaders.

“His ball skills were absolutely stupid. Absolutely stupid. He also had no drops, my friend. His determination when we went down to the red zone, he wanted the ball. He called the ball. When we put the installation of the red zone every week, he was shot on this subject because he would say:” Well, I will mark on this one right. “”

Gates was not the first hoop of the University to transition to NFL and to become a tight star in a star (which would be the aforementioned gonzalez), but he continued the pipeline which finally included players like Jimmy Graham and Julius Thomas, among others – a pipeline that the teams are teams Continue trying mine To date, when the opportunity arises. If you can find the following doors, it is rightly considered to be a gold mine.

Given his enormous achievements and his impact on the game, there was no other way for the history of Gates to conclude than with the induction in the temple of fame. Just because it was an unlikely destination at the start of the trip that it could have finished otherwise.