Antonio Gates wants to play for the Chargers. The Chargers still could use a tight end. Antonio Gates still remains available. Does he deserve the opportunity? Absolutely yes!
LaDainian Tomlinson, now a special assistant in the team’s front office, played with the tight end for seven seasons with the Chargers. “I believe the only place Antonio wants to play is the Chargers,” Tomlinson said on Sirius XM NFL Radio. “I think he has the mind frame of ‘if I go play its gonna be for the Chargers; if it’s not the Chargers, then I’m good; I won’t play.”
The Chargers, who publicly bid Gates farewell in April, recently contacted Gates’ representation about a possible reunion. As you most likely already know, their starting tight end, Hunter Henry, tore his anterior cruciate ligament in the offseason program. This was a huge setback for the Bolts as Henry was emerging as one of the better tight ends in the league.
Gates, 38, had a career-low 316 yards and a career-low 10.5 yards per catch last season, but he has 927 receptions for 11,508 yards and 114 touchdowns in his career. (Hall of fame numbers) Perhaps the Chargers simply felt Gates should call it quits. He definitely is not getting younger. Let’s be fair here. Gates is no spring chicken. At 38 he is considered a fossil in the NFL world. Not to many players make it to their late thirties.
Currently, there are only 6 players to make it to 40. Here is the current list:
6) Terence Newman: Now the oldest active defensive player, Newman is currently looking for a home after spending the last three seasons with the Vikings. The two-time Pro Bowler is no longer a lockdown cornerback, but he can play safety as well and still has plenty of plays left in him. He’ll find a home before the start of the regular season, when he turns 40.
5) Sebastian Janikowski: His NFL future looked bleak after a back injury cost him all of the 2017 season, ending his 18-year run with Oakland. However he signed a one-year deal last week with the Seahawks, giving him a shot to compete for the starting job. A rare first-round pick as a kicker, Janikowski managed to actually live up to that billing, as he sits 11th in NFL history in scoring and is the all-time leader in makes from beyond 50 yards.
4) Tom Brady: Come August 3 the future Hall of Famer turns 41, and he’s still the best at his position. At age 40, the league’s oldest player threw for 4,577 yards and 32 touchdowns, winning his third league MVP honor. The story of Brady is already the stuff of legend. At this point no one in NFL history has done what he’s doing at such an age, but don’t let the old guy fool you – he’s not going anywhere anytime soon.
3) Matt Bryant: Thus begins our run on kickers, starting with Bryant. A month shy of his 43rd birthday, Bryant will embark on his 10th season with the Falcons in 2018, a year after connecting on 87 percent of his field goal attempts. That includes making eight-of-nine from beyond 50 yards, the most in the league. And it looks like Bryant is sticking around for a bit – he signed a three-year extension in March that will run him through the 2020 season.
2) Phil Dawson: The 43-year-old has one season left on his deal with the Cardinals, and age hasn’t cost him his strength. Never a bomber to begin with, Dawson last year beat the Jaguars with a 57-yard field goal with a second to go. A career 84.2 percent kicker, Dawson is among the most accurate in league history.
1) Adam Vinatieri: He turned 45 last December and the kicker is still automatic. Remember his first Super Bowl-winning kick, when New England stunned St. Louis? He was 29 then and in his sixth season in the NFL. And amazingly, at this point in his career he’s spent more time with the Colts (12 seasons) than the Patriots (10), and he’s not done yet, having signed a one-year deal in February to return to Indianapolis. He’s 58 points shy of becoming the league’s all-time scoring leader, and is likely to get there around Week 10, barring injury.
The Chargers could use Gates simply as a decoy. For example, are opposing defenses just gonna say “Don’t worry about covering Gates, He’s old”? Absolutely not! Are the Chargers banking on “backup” TE Virgil Green? He has 71 catches for 807 yards and four touchdowns in his seven-year career. Not exactly scary numbers. None of the other tight ends on the roster even have a regular-season catch.
This brings us back to reality. This brings us back to Gates. Number 85 deserves one more shot. Gates can pad his already very impressive stats, plus, he can really help out on 3rd and short situations. One more thing: The Rivers to Gates magic through the years has been a thing of beauty. Rivers puts the ball in the just the right spot, even when Gates is covered, the pass is usually completed. Touchdown Chargers! It is actually a no brainer. Why all the drama? LACI says: Get Gatesy signed immediately! Please give us your opinion below.
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