Gates Top of the Tree
Gates caught three touchdown passes from Drew Brees and the Chargers also got a scoring pass from LaDainian Tomlinson in beating Kansas City on Sunday. It goes some way to showing why the Chargers think Gates is the best tight end in the NFL.
Gates put the game out of reach with his third score, when he rumbled through strong safety Sammy Knight for a 28-13 lead with a little over nine minutes left.
Brees threw for 324 yards. Gates had 10 catches for 145 yards, both career bests, and the three touchdown catches tied his career best. Last year, his thirteen touchdown catches set an NFL record for tight ends.
He has six touchdowns in seven games. He missed the opener while finishing his suspension for missing a team-imposed deadline for ending his training camp holdout.
Gates' big day for the Chargers (4-4) came against a team that features six-time Pro Bowler Tony Gonzalez.
Gonzalez, for the Chiefs, had seven catches for 97 yards and one score.
"Any time we play against each other, he makes me elevate my game" Gates said. "that is just the competitive nature about me."
Gonzalez was suitably impressed with Gates' performance:
"I am happy for Antonio. He came out and played great today, one of the best games I have ever seen by a tight end," Antonio Gates showed why the San Diego Chargers think he's the best tight end in the NFL.
Gates, a former college basketball player, continues to improve no matter how teams try to cover him.
"They just get him in a one-on-one situation and he wins that battle," Chiefs coach Dick Vermeil said.
