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Tony Gonzalez, TE
(6-4 1/8, 244, 4.82) | California
Drafted by: Kansas City, Pick 13, Round 1, Overall 13 |
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Notes: Fourth-year junior who redshirted in 1993. Also doubled as a basketball player and started seven games at power forward in the 1995-96 season. Basketball is his first love, but he's a much better NFL prospect than NBA prospect. In football, Gonzalez started twice as a redshirt freshman in '94 and caught eight passes for 62 yards and a touchdown. In '95, he was a yearlong starter, catching 37-541-2, including 10-150-1 in the season finale vs. Stanford. Last year he was an All-Pacific-10 pick, catching 44-699-5. Positives: Very long arms. Jumps well. Plays taller than his size. Mobile and athletic with enough size to play on the line of scrimmage. Superb all-around athlete. Runs well and can get down the field and split the zone. Too fast for most linebackers to cover and too big for most defensive backs. Generally catches the ball very nicely and can pluck the ball with his hands with ease. Will make the catch in heavy traffic. Turns upfield quickly after the reception and is a determined runner who will break tackles. Improving as a blocker. Has gotten bigger and stronger. Negatives: Is not as big, physical and effective when it comes to blocking as scouts would like a tight end to be. Still has too many drops caused by lapses in concentration. Fumbles the ball way too often after the catch. Summary: A pass-catching tight end or H-back who really could have used another year in school but is still a potential top pick. Gonzalez could be a bigger, faster, more athletic Brent Jones with more experience and better ball security. His dropped passes stem from lapses in concentration, not his hands, which are excellent. Information provided by Pro Football Weekly
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