2008 Preseason Schedule

2008 Regular Season Schedule

"SUPER AD: BELIEVE IN NOW" – Vote for Colquitt & Gonzalez
Dec 04, 2008, 8:44:31 AM


“He digs under his desk and pulls out a baseball…and he signs it: ‘Dear Dusty. One day you’ll be a superstar. – Art Rooney.’“
– Chiefs P Dustin Colquitt

“You should have seen his look. It was like a little kid when you stole his big wheel at the park. It was the best prank I have ever seen.“
– Chiefs TE Tony Gonzalez

Four Kansas City Chiefs told their stories. Now, Chiefs fans can help turn one of them into the NFL’s Super Bowl commercial at nfl.com/superad. Chiefs P Dustin Colquitt and TE Tony Gonzalez are featured in a head-to-head competition against their rivals from the AFC West in the NFL’s “Super Ad: Believe In Now” promotion.

NFL Films traveled to NFL training camps and team facilities to capture the players’ stories. Now fans will have the opportunity to hear these unique tales and get an exclusive look at some of their favorite NFL players, such as:

Colquitt, who recalls receiving a signed ball from former Steelers owner, Art Rooney, Sr., and reflects on the impact both the ball and his own father, former Steelers P Craig Colquitt have had on his life.
Gonzalez, who talks about the great prank the Chiefs played on the way back from the ‘98 American Bowl in Japan.
Fans can visit the Chiefs section to also see LS J.P. Darche and LB Derrick Johnson tell their stories.

Fans will vote on the 24 stories from AFC players on nfl.com/superad  from December 4th – 17th. Four AFC stories, one from each division, will be selected to continue to the Championship Round where they will compete against four videos from the NFC as well as one wildcard video. The Championship Round runs from December 18th – January 4th. Fans will have 18 days to vote for their favorite player with a Super Bowl appearance on the line.

Fans can visit the “All Videos” section to watch all 210 NFL players’ stories posted on nfl.com/superad. Fans will then watch the winning pitch, and the player who told it, during Super Bowl XLIII on Sunday, February 1st on NBC.

 

He asserts Peterson raised price late
By TOM SILVERSTEIN and GREG A. BEDARD
tsilverstein@journalsentinel.com
Posted: Oct. 15, 2008
Green Bay - The Green Bay Packers thought they had closed a deal for the Kansas City Chiefs' Tony Gonzalez just before the trading deadline, but according to the nine-time Pro Bowl selection Chiefs general manager Carl Peterson pulled out at the last second.

Two NFL sources told the Journal Sentinel Tuesday that the Packers were in the running for Gonzalez and that they were offering a third-round draft choice. Another source said Wednesday that Gonzalez had approved a trade to the Packers and was prepared to make the move.

According to two of the sources, the Packers and another team were offering the same compensation for Gonzalez, but Peterson decided at the last minute that he wanted more than a third-round pick.

In an interview with FOXSports.com Wednesday, Gonzalez said he was shocked that a deal didn't happen after talking to Peterson.

"I wanted to know if it could happen with a fourth (-round pick)," Gonzalez said. "He started talking about a second and a fifth like the (Jeremy) Shockey deal. Nobody is going to trade a second for a 32-year-old tight end. All along Carl said he would do something that works for both parties. Then he talked about how he traded a third for Willie Roaf, and he made it pretty clear to me that's what was going to get it done. That was certainly fair.

"I know teams offered a third and in the end, Carl made the asking price a second."

One NFL source said Tuesday night that Gonzalez was livid about Peterson's decision not to let him go. Gonzalez didn't dispute that when he addressed reporters at Chiefs headquarters Wednesday.

He was asked whether he would have gone to Green Bay.

"Yeah. I probably would've," he said.

General manager Ted Thompson had the option of meeting Peterson's new price but decided it was too much and let the trading deadline pass without a deal.

Meeting Peterson's demands wouldn't have been that different from when former Packers general manager Ron Wolf sent a second-round pick to Miami for tight end Keith Jackson and the fourth-round pick the Packers had sent the Dolphins for receiver Mark Ingram. Wolf made the trade with no conditions despite the fact Jackson had no intention of reporting to the Packers.

Jackson was 29 at the time of the trade, which occurred on March 30, 1995.

Quarterback Aaron Rodgers, who like Gonzalez attended the University of California, said adding another offensive threat wouldn't have hurt.

"You can't help but say yes to that, if you got a Cal guy," Rodgers said. "But I'm very confident in the guys we've got here and the kind of athletes we have. I trust the management and the direction they're going."

Tight end Donald Lee said he wouldn't have been offended if Gonzalez had been added.

"I feel like whatever they can do to help this team win, I'm pleased with that," Lee said. "I don't have any say-so or no control over what they do but I trust that whatever decision they make would help the team out a lot better. So whatever they go with, I'm pleased with it
 

Chiefs Recognize Hispanic Heritage Month
Oct 15, 2008, 4:54:22 PM


The Kansas City Chiefs boast two of the more well-known NFL players that come from Hispanic ancestry. Together, LB Donnie Edwards and TE Tony Gonzalez have made quite a name for themselves on the gridiron. However these California natives also share a strong commitment in giving back to the Latino community. An example of that sense of devotion took place this week when the two hosted a special event in celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month (September 15 – October 15). Joined by some of their current teammates and former Chiefs P Louie Aguiar, they held a football clinic for 80 children from Guadalupe Center.

The event, which took place at the Chiefs Practice Facility, was a special way of getting these local youth excited about the sport of football. With the very same “Fútbol Americano - Celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month” banners overlooking the field that once hung in Arrowhead Stadium, all seemed to enjoy this event. At the end of the clinic, the children also got special-edition autographed cards by Edwards, Gonzalez and Aguiar.

“Any time you can give back, especially to children like this, it just warms your heart,” noted Gonzalez. “This was just very meaningful for me to be involved with.”

Edwards echoed those thoughts when he said, “As someone that grew up in their shoes, this is great. Neither Tony nor I was really all that different from where these kids are right now. I think that’s important for them to know. If they put their minds to it, they can be anything they want.”

The Guadalupe Center is an organization that’s earned a great deal of respect locally for its outreach in the Hispanic community. Shortly after the turn of the century, many Mexicans immigrated to America, specifically the Kansas City area. However, these individuals quickly discovered there were many hardships in their adopted home. In response to that, a Catholic women’s club decided in 1919 to establish a volunteer school and clinic for the underprivileged Mexican immigrants who had settled in the Westside of the bustling metropolis. Naming the entity after the patron saint of Mexico, the Guadalupe Center became one of the nation’s first social service agencies for Latinos and has grown to be the heart of the Latino community within Kansas City.

 

A trade best not made
Oct 14, 2008, 4:47:27 PM by Jonathan Rand - FAQ


The Chiefs did the right thing – in fact the only sensible thing — by not trading Tony Gonzalez.

Trading the future Hall of Fame tight end would’ve weakened an offense that already ranks 28th in the NFL. Because teams don’t give up high draft choices for a highly paid player who might retire any season, the Chiefs weren’t about to remotely get fair market value for Gonzalez. And their image would have taken a beating around Kansas City, not to mention the rest of the NFL.

The Chiefs cannot afford to be viewed as a team for which Pro Bowl players don’t want to play. The Jared Allen trade made sense and invited little criticism because the Chiefs received three draft picks – one in the first round and two in the third — and avoided getting strapped to the six-year, $72.36 million contract the star pass rusher received from the Minnesota Vikings.

But if the Chiefs had let Gonzalez leave just because he wants to play for a Super Bowl contender, what’s to stop any other disgruntled veteran from making a similar demand?

Building through the draft is a sound approach for the Chiefs, yet this season is making it clear that they have more holes than can be filled exclusively through the draft. They’ll need to fill a few spots next year with veteran free agents, including perhaps a quarterback, and any free agent they court will want to see as much light at the end of the tunnel as Gonzalez wants to see.

Herm Edwards is trying to assemble a roster of youngsters with great ability and great attitudes who will grow together into a championship team. But if you can’t acquire enough winning players, you run the risk of getting stuck on a treadmill of perpetual rebuilding. And how do you give quarterback Brodie Croyle a fighting chance to prove he’s the quarterback of the future if you take away a perennial Pro Bowl receiver?

Nobody has ever accused Gonzalez of being a negative locker room presence and the idea that he’s burned his bridges with the Chiefs doesn’t mesh with the reality of NFL locker rooms. Professional athletes, even the young ones, hear so many demands and gripes from teammates that they learn to tune them out and go about their business.

Losing always breeds frustration and you can’t let every frustrated athlete go out the door. Gonzalez’s desire to win a playoff game before his career ends is understandable, but perhaps he’d be less frustrated if he saw more progress. It has to be particularly frustrating for him to run routes for three different quarterbacks while the offense sputters and the team starts 1-4.

Young players need to observe star players and the work habits that helped them become stars. That’s why coaches who take over rebuilding teams often bring in a veteran who’s on the downside of his career but still can contribute on the field and in the locker room.

The Chiefs would have done Gonzalez a favor by trading him by Tuesday’s deadline. But the Chiefs need to do what’s best for the franchise, not for one player.

And you can bet your bottom dollar that the actual circumstances of a trade would be revised down the road in the minds of many players, and especially the minds of their agents.

The story would soon become: “The Chiefs don’t respect their great players. Look at the way they dumped Tony Gonzalez.”

There’s this old saw in baseball: Sometimes the best trades are the ones you don’t make. Amen for this one.

 

CLIP REEL: TONY GONZALEZ
by Ted Bauer

By now, you likely know of Chiefs TE Tony Gonzalez saving a man's life (a Charger fan, oddly) in a California restaurant by performing the Heimlich. You may not remember that back in November 2000, Gonzalez ran into a cameraman along the sidelines; the cameraman had a seizure. When he was taken to the hospital, they discovered a brain tumor that might have killed him had it gone undetected. In a way, Gonzalez saved his life as well. In addition to his accomplishments on the field, he's always been a class act off it; it's time to celebrate him.

Since the best source for NFL player videos is NFL.Com, here's his video page from that site.
The dude isn't afraid to go across the middle.
Or make a Thanksgiving commercial for the NFL.
If you're interested in what Tony thinks is sexy, check this out.
If you're interested in a rather open interview with Maxim.Com, go here.
Damon Huard to Tony Gonzalez, Tecmo stylz.
Nice mix of Tony, Priest Holmes, and Larry Johnson. Man, the Chiefs should be better.
A 2007 Chiefs recap.
Man on the Street piece from the Chiefs training camp.
Tony Gonzalez's work with the United Way.
Tony teaches you how to make a vegan shake.
Brian Baldinger talking Chiefs on "The Chiefs Endzone Show."
Tony's Wiki.
His Football Reference page.
More info on his vegan lifestyle.
The Tony Gonzalez Foundation.
He was a judge on Oprah's Big Give.
USA Today currently has him as the second best TE in the NFL.
This extremely detailed piece from Pro Football Reference has him as the second best TE of all-time.
A look back at him setting the TD record for tight ends.
His profile from the Latino Legends in Sports site.
His Fantasy Football value explained.
How ridiculous is it that Gonzalez almost played at Cal with Jason Kidd?
No idea what this is, but it seems interesting.
Herm talks about this season and Tony's role.

 Former Cal star Tony Gonzalez saves man's life in restaurant

Doug Tucker
Associated Press

Article Launched: 07/07/2008 04:57:19 PM PDT

KANSAS CITY, Mo. - A California man says Pro Bowl tight end Tony Gonzalez of the Kansas City Chiefs kept him from choking to death.

"Tony saved my life. There's no doubt," Ken Hunter, a shipping company manager, told The Associated Press in a phone interview from Huntington Beach, Calif.

"Tony came up behind me and gave me the Heimlich maneuver. Thank God he was there."

Gonzalez, a former Cal star and a nine-time Pro Bowl selection who has set numerous NFL records, was having dinner with his wife, brother and 5-week-old daughter at Capone's restaurant in Huntington Beach Thursday night. Hunter, 45, was dining with his girlfriend at the next table when suddenly a piece of meat stuck in his throat.

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

Gonzalez, sitting with his back to Hunter's table, looked around when he heard Hunter's companion yelling.

"She was screaming, 'He can't breathe, he can't breathe,"' Gonzalez said by phone from California, where he lives in the offseason. "The whole restaurant was quiet. Nobody was doing anything."

Then I saw he was turning blue. Everybody in the restaurant was just kind of sitting there wide-eyed."

The 6-foot-5 Gonzalez, about a foot taller than Hunter, jumped out of his chair and came up behind the stricken man and began to perform the Heimlich maneuver.

"After just a few seconds, the piece of meat popped out," Hunter said. "I could breathe again. It's a good thing Tony is so tall because I had stood up - I think."

Diana Martin, a restaurant employee, said no one else seemed to know what to do.

"He was so lucky Tony was there," Martin said. "In a situation like that, every second counts. It helped a lot that Tony's a big, strong guy because you have to be able to apply some pretty good pressure. I don't think I would have been strong enough to help him."

Hunter went into the restroom to clean up and didn't realize he'd been saved by a famous athlete until he came out.

"I'm a big NFL fan and I recognized him right away. I was still kind of dazed when I went over and thanked him and said, 'What can I do for you?' I guess I said it about 1,000 times."

Gonzalez, who has been active in charity and community activities during a brilliant career with the Chiefs, said he had no intention of having the incident become public.

"The next night I had a dinner for my grandmother's 90th birthday, and people were saying, 'Why didn't you tell me about that?' I honestly don't want to make a big deal out of it. But of course it does give me a lot of satisfaction to know that I was able to help somebody."

One of the most productive receivers in pro football history, Gonzalez holds the NFL record for tight ends with 820 career receptions and 102 catches in a season. He needs only 79 more yards receiving to become the career leader among tight ends.

He has never received any formal instruction in the Heimlich maneuver.

"I had seen it done, so I just did it," Gonzalez said. "When you find yourself in those situations where you have to take action in a crucial situation, you just do it. I got the same feeling I get when I go on a hospital visit."'

Hunter is a lifelong fan of the San Diego Chargers, one of Kansas City's key rivals in the AFC West, and plans to be at the game when the Chiefs visit the Chargers on Nov. 9.

"I'm Tony's No. 1 fan now," he said.

And what will this longtime follower of the Chargers do if they're ahead by four or five points in the final minute and Gonzalez runs into the end zone and leaps up for what would be the game-winning touchdown for K.C.?

"I'm going to be yelling for Tony to catch the ball," Hunter said. "I think all my friends will understand."

Watch for Tony  this Spring on ABC in Oprah's first reality TV Show. Tony was hand picked by Harpo Productions to be one of the Judges for this new innovative show that will dominate Prime Time. Look for "Oprah's Big Give" premiering on March 2, 2008 after "Extreme Home Makeover Edition" on ABC.

Welcome Baby Malia!

We are pleased to announce the birth of Malia Swiftley Gonzalez born on Tuesday, May 27th at 8:07 am, weighing 7.11pounds, 19 1/2 inches.

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Check Out MVPSpot!
 

MVPSpot is an online community that provides amateur athletes the ability to showcase their talents to the word. It's Your Sport and we're Your Spotlight. Whether you're a budding star or a weekend warrior, your friends and family, future coaches and potential sponsor want to see your stuff. Upload video and pictures of your best slam-dunk, a grimacing tackle you gave in practice or even the wild fall you took skateboarding over stairs. It doesn't matter what your sport or hobby is, or even how good you are, people everywhere want to see your stuff.

At MVPSpot we want you to stay in touch with your existing or old teammates. For current teammates you can post practice and game schedules or keep track of your season’s stats. And for those old teammates ever wonder what they are doing now? Wouldn't it be great to message that best friend of yours on your very first soccer team? Or reconnect with the star pitcher on your championship softball team? At MVPSpot you can stay in touch with the people you shared some of the most memorable moments of your life with. Best of all, MVPSpot is a safe community for athletes of all ages, and is the ideal place for you to share your interests and passions, while discovering those of others.

Join for Free! View amazing amateur and pro Athlete profiles. Connect with old or new teammates. Meet others with similar hobbies.

The 247 lb. Vegan

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NFL star Tony Gonzalez is out to answer a question: Can a football player live entirely on plants?

By REED ALBERGOTTI
January 25, 2008

The protein-rich bounty of the football training table is supposed to grow the biggest and strongest athletes in professional sports. Kansas City Chiefs tight-end Tony Gonzalez was afraid it was going to kill him. "It's the Catch-22," says Mr. Gonzalez, 31. "Am I going to be unhealthy and play football? Or be healthy and get out of the league?"

So last year, on the eve of the biggest season of his career, Mr. Gonzalez embarked on a diet resolution that smacked head-on with gridiron gospel as old as the leather helmet. He decided to try going vegan.

Living solely on plant food, a combination of nuts, fruits, vegetables, grains and the like, has long been the fringe diet of young rebels and aging nonconformists. Even the government recommends regular helpings of meat, fish and dairy. Vegans of late have gotten more hip with such best sellers as the brash "Skinny Bitch," and its more scholarly cousin, "The China Study." Both books argue vegans can live longer.

For the rest of the article click here

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Team Logos are property of the National Football League