Posts tagged TonyGonzalez at FanHouse

Training camps are underway, the NFL season is right around the corner, and to get you ready for 2008, FanHouse previews all 32 teams, "heat index" style. We'll rate each club in 10 categories on a scale of 1 to 10, high score wins.

Quarterbacks: Oh, holy God. Do we have to start here? Can't we start at defensive line? Or even offensive line? No? Okay. So last season, Damon Huard was such the pinnacle of mediocrity, he may have redefined the word for decades. It wasn't so much that Huard was spectacularly terrible, throwing constant interceptions as he heaved them down the field, Rex-Grossman-style, it was that he looked singularly incapable of actually getting the ball downfield to begin with. So, after far too many games watching the offense set new franchise lows, Brodie Croyle who had been waiting in the wings, finally took the reins. The results were less than spectacular. Chiefs fans support Croyle because the kid has shown flashes of leadership and a pretty solid arm. The trouble is, the protection was so bad last year, no one knows whether to pin the offense's disastrous play on an inability by Brodie to produce, or a result of the fact that Croyle spent so much time on the run it's a wonder he's not dead in the cold, cold ground. So with a retooled and slightly upgraded offensive line, he should be better? Right? Right? Oh, Jesus, where's the bottle? Wait, what? Huard's still on the team? Must get bigger bottle. Heat Index: 2

Is calling Vernon Davis a real life and fantasy football bust for the last two years a stretch? Most certainly not. His seven touchdowns over two years are decent at best in 24 games, particularly when you consider that he was a first round pick. And 774 yards in that span = meh.

But this year, oh yes, this year, Vernon has big expectations, what with Mike Martz rolling in town. And apparently that includes mocking Tony Gonzalez and Jason Witten.

Davis, who ranked ninth in receptions (52) at his position last season, had no qualms comparing himself to the best tight ends in the NFL. "I'm going to be No. 1," he said. "That's my goal, nothing less. With this offense, I believe I can do it."

Comparing himself to Tony Gonzalez, Jason Witten and other top NFL tight ends, Davis won't back off.

"They're OK," Davis said. "They're all right. I believe I'm up there too at their level, maybe even better. I'm saying I'm going to have a great season. An awesome one."

Vernon went on to say that he expects 70 catches, 1,000 yards and a Pro Bowl this season (but not because of his blocking ... "It's about making catches".)

Is calling Vernon Davis a real life and fantasy football bust for the last two years a stretch? Most certainly not. His seven touchdowns over two years are decent at best in 24 games, particularly when you consider that he was a first round pick. And 774 yards in that span = meh.

But this year, oh yes, this year, Vernon has big expectations, what with Mike Martz rolling in town. And apparently that includes mocking Tony Gonzalez and Jason Witten.

Davis, who ranked ninth in receptions (52) at his position last season, had no qualms comparing himself to the best tight ends in the NFL. "I'm going to be No. 1," he said. "That's my goal, nothing less. With this offense, I believe I can do it."

Comparing himself to Tony Gonzalez, Jason Witten and other top NFL tight ends, Davis won't back off.

"They're OK," Davis said. "They're all right. I believe I'm up there too at their level, maybe even better. I'm saying I'm going to have a great season. An awesome one."

Vernon went on to say that he expects 70 catches, 1,000 yards and a Pro Bowl this season (but not because of his blocking ... "It's about making catches".)

Staff rankings were compiled by averaging the individual rankings of each member of Fantasy Fanhouse. The rankings are based on standard leagues where you gain points for yardage and scores. Or something ...

The tight end position has belonged to the either Tony Gonalez, Antonio Gates, or both for the better part of a decade. Well, now they have company ... and plenty of it. This position has gone from the most shallow to actually quite loaded at the top.

And neither of the aforementioned guys is our top TE. That distinction belongs to Jason Witten.

Of course, this changes strategy drastically in leagues of more than ten owners. You used to pretty much wait until the last three rounds to nab a TE if you didn't get one of the G boys. Now you can't afford to wait, given that there is a fairly steep drop after Heath Miller at number nine. You don't want to be one of the 3 or 5 guys with a decided disadvantage at this spot with your weekly starter in your free fleaflicker league.

The FanHouse Top Five
1. Jason Witten, Cowboys
2. Antonio Gates, Chargers
3. Kellen Winslow, Browns
4. Chris Cooley, Redskins
5. Tony Gonzalez, Chiefs

It looks like the Chiefs could have a Brett Favre situation on their hands. Except exactly different. Tight end Tony Gonzalez is entering his 12 season and he's indicating that there's only a 95 percent chance he comes back for No. 13. See, just like Favre.

In fact, according to the Kansas City Star, if the Chiefs win the Super Bowl, Gonzalez is gone -- apparently, the future Hall of Famer gives the team a five percent chance to win the whole thing, which seems awfully high, but, hey, he gets points for optimism.

Fantasy Island scenarios aside, Gonzalez sounds like a guy who'll be around in 2009:

"There are going to be some growing pains," he said. "There's no doubt about that. But I think by the end of the year we're going to have a really good football team, and we're going to be that much better next year."

Which should make quarterback Brodie Croyle very happy.

Oh, and another reason to hang around for one more season: Gonzalez would have to return a big part of his signing bonus. Whenever he finally decides to leave the game, Gonzalez will retire as one of the best tight ends in NFL history, and more importantly, I suspect he'll graduate to the television studio and spare us all the need to un-retire a handful of times before actually doing so.

Thanks in advance for skipping the self-indulgent, "this is all about me!" act. Greatly appreciated, sir.

Maybe what former Ravens third-round wideout Devard Darling needed was the proverbial change of scenery. Or maybe he's nothing more than a No. 3 or 4 NFL wide receiver. That he struggled to make it on the field in Baltimore's anemic offense is indicting, but it's hard to place all the blame on the pass catchers when Kyle Boller is whizzing footballs in the general direction in which they were intended.

Whatever, Darling is now in Kansas City, and he's trying earn playing time on the only AFC unit with bigger questions at wide receiver than Baltimore (the Bears have the league's worst wideouts by miles, in case you're wondering). Second-year player Dwayne Bowe is quarterback Brodie Croyle's go-to guy -- and he should be -- but after that, it's a crapshoot.

The rest of the Chiefs' receiving unit is a bit of a mystery. But Croyle is pretty sure he's spotted the Chiefs' fastest receiver.

"That would probably be Devard Darling," Croyle said. "He can really go. It's one of those things where you don't really notice it until you see the film. He just 'leaves' people."

So there's that. Bowe is primed for another big season, but defenses are sure to roll coverages in his direction, which means that Tony Gonzalez and his protege, Brad Cottam, will play an integral role in the offense (which, frankly, isn't much of a change).

With Fantasy Football season ready to kick in high gear, Fantasy FanHouse is here to preview each and every team. Listen closely, you're almost guaranteed to win your FREE fantasy football league, only over at Fleaflicker.

Meet The ...
Youth movement. The Chiefs got old, fast, a few years ago and this year they had 12 draft picks. The once studly offensive line that made stars out of Priest Holmes and Larry Johnson broke down, and the QB position became a debacle. It's just too early for this group to salvage anything of real consequence.

The Breakout
I'm gonna have to go with Jamaal Charles, but only because of the poor selection. He's your handcuff to Johnson, not Kolby Smith, and he's going to have a role in the offense even with Johnson healthy ... to the point that Herm Edwards has hinted Charles will get 10-12 touches a game. He's relegated to 2nd string behind LJ, so please don't misconstrue his inclusion here as some sign that I think he's a fantasy stud. Far from it. The fact of the matter is that there are only three usable fantasy players on this team, and none of them are undervalued heading into fantasy drafts. Charles is the next most likely fantasy commodity to emerge ... it's as simple as that.

With Fantasy Football season ready to kick in high gear, Fantasy FanHouse is here to preview each and every team. Listen closely, you're almost guaranteed to win your FREE fantasy football league, only over at Fleaflicker.

Meet The ...
Youth movement. The Chiefs got old, fast, a few years ago and this year they had 12 draft picks. The once studly offensive line that made stars out of Priest Holmes and Larry Johnson broke down, and the QB position became a debacle. It's just too early for this group to salvage anything of real consequence.

The Breakout
I'm gonna have to go with Jamaal Charles, but only because of the poor selection. He's your handcuff to Johnson, not Kolby Smith, and he's going to have a role in the offense even with Johnson healthy ... to the point that Herm Edwards has hinted Charles will get 10-12 touches a game. He's relegated to 2nd string behind LJ, so please don't misconstrue his inclusion here as some sign that I think he's a fantasy stud. Far from it. The fact of the matter is that there are only three usable fantasy players on this team, and none of them are undervalued heading into fantasy drafts. Charles is the next most likely fantasy commodity to emerge ... it's as simple as that.

Kansas City Chiefs tight end Tony Gonzalez has impressive career stats: 820 catches, 9,882 yards, 66 touchdowns. And now, one saved life.

Gonzalez was having dinner in a restaurant in Huntington Beach, California, last week when a man named Ken Hunter started choking. Hunter tells the Associated Press what happened from there:

"Tony saved my life. There's no doubt,"...

"I tried to take a drink of water, but I couldn't swallow. Then I couldn't breathe. That's a terrible feeling. I couldn't breathe. Then I guess I started to panic."

Gonzalez jumped up, grabbed Hunter and performed the Heimlich maneuver. "After just a few seconds, the piece of meat popped out," Hunter said.

The Rams featured one of the worst offenses in the NFL last season, and, apparently, a new offensive coordinator and an old tight end will fix things. Huh. According to SI.com's Bucky Brooks, Randy McMichael, who caught just 39 passes last season (his worst effort in his six-year career), will be the impetus for change, courtesy of Al Saunders' delectable schemes. In theory, anyway.

Saunders was the OC in St. Louis under Dick Vermeil, so he's had some success here, but after a forgettable two-year stint in Washington, his reputation as an offensive mastermind has taken a hit.

"He has the ability to put up big numbers in that offense," said a NFC scout. "I'm not saying that he is a better player than Chris Cooley, but he is a better athlete and he'll get enough opportunities to be a problem for the defense." ...

Under Saunders' direction, the starting tight end has averaged 72 receptions for 900 yards and six touchdowns. Saunders, who undoubtedly learned how to utilize the tight end while as working as an offensive assistant on Don Coryell's staff with the Chargers during the Kellen Winslow era, builds his attack from inside-out, using the running back and tight end in prominent roles.