This auction is for the following Tony Gonzalez (TOUGH AUTOGRAPH) Hall of Fame autographed ROOKIE CARD 1997 Finest #269 RC PSA/DNA SIGNED CARD that has been authenticated by both PSA/DNA #85226416 Slabbed cards and authenticated and JSA as well #VV41406  authenticated. This signed card would make a great gift or investment. Autographed items that have been authenticated by PSA/DNA and JSA as well adds and additional value to all signed items that bare both authentication process.

BIO: Tony Gonzalez NFL Hall of Fame 2019 Inductee, Kansas City Chiefs (1997–2008), Atlanta Falcons (2009–2013), 6× First-team All-Pro (1999–2001, 2003, 2008, 2012), 4× Second-team All-Pro (2002, 2004, 2006, 2007), 14× Pro Bowl (1999–2008, 2010–2013), 2004 NFL receptions leader, NFL 2000s All-Decade Team, NFL 100th Anniversary All-Time Team, Kansas City Chiefs Ring of Honor Hall of Fame, Consensus All-American (1996) and First-team All-Pac-10 (1996)

Mr. Gonzalez played tight end who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 17 seasons. Regarded as one of the greatest tight ends of all time, he is the NFL leader in tight end receiving yards and receptions, along with ranking third in overall receptions. Gonzalez spent his first 12 seasons with the Kansas City Chiefs, who selected him in the first round of the 1997 NFL Draft. During his last five seasons, he was a member of the Atlanta Falcons. Since retiring in 2013, Gonzalez has served as an analyst for Fox Sports.

Gonzalez finished his career with 14 Pro Bowl selections, the most for a tight end and second-most in league history, in addition to receiving six first-team All-Pros. Known for his durability and rarely fumbling, Gonzalez appeared in 270 of 272 regular season games and lost only two fumbles on 1,327 touches. He was inducted to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2019. Gonzalez chose to attend the University of California, Berkeley, where he majored in communications and played both football and basketball. As a member of the California Golden Bears football team, he played tight end under future NFL coach Steve Mariucci. Gonzalez was also an All-Pac-10 and All-America selection. Gonzalez also continued his basketball career at Cal. In his junior year, he played in 28 games, averaging 6.8 points and 5.4 rebounds per game as California made it to the Sweet Sixteen of the NCAA Basketball Tournament. Eventually, Gonzalez had to choose a career between basketball or football. On the difficulty of the transition between the two, Tony said "you get done playing football and then you transition to basketball[, which] had already been going for a month", but ultimately "the decision was pretty much made for me..." Gonzalez decided to forgo his final year of eligibility to declare for the NFL Draft. Gonzalez was ranked as one of the top tight ends in the 1997 NFL Draft and was considered a top 15 selection. The Chiefs traded up from the 18th to the 13th selection with the Tennessee Oilers to draft Gonzalez. Gonzalez began his career in the 1997 season. He finished his rookie season with 33 receptions, two touchdowns, and a blocked punt on special teams, helping the Chiefs to finish with the best record in the American Football Conference (AFC). He was named to the NFL All-Rookie Team for the 1997 season. In the 1998 season, Gonzalez saw dramatic improvements with 59 receptions for 621 yards, and he also caught two touchdown passes for the second (consecutive) year.

The 1999 season saw Gonzalez again improving when he caught 76 passes for 849 yards and a career-high 11 touchdown receptions, earning his first Pro Bowl selection. In addition, he was named as a First Team All-Pro. In the 2000 season, he had 93 receptions for 1,203 receiving yards and nine receiving touchdowns. He was named to the Pro Bowl and as a First Team All-Pro for the 2000 season. In the 2001 season, he had 73 receptions for 917 receiving yards and six receiving touchdowns while earning his third career First Team All-Pro honor and Pro Bowl nomination. On November 4, against the San Diego Chargers, he threw his first professional pass, which went for 40 yards. In the 2002 season, he had 63 receptions for 773 receiving yards and seven receiving touchdowns to go along with yet another Pro Bowl nod. Among the highlights from that season was a 48–30 victory over the Miami Dolphins, where he had seven receptions for 140 receiving yards and a career-high three touchdowns. From 2003 to 2006, Gonzalez was the most productive tight end in the NFL. In the 2003 season, he had 71 receptions for 916 receiving yards and ten receiving touchdowns. For the fourth time in his career, he was named as a First Team All-Pro.[30] He was named to his fifth consecutive Pro Bowl for the 2003 season. His best season statistically came in 2004, when he caught an NFL-record (for a tight end) 102 passes for 1,258 yards and seven touchdowns. In Week 17, he had a career-high 14 receptions for 144 yards against the San Diego Chargers. He earned a spot in the Pro Bowl for his historic season. Gonzalez's single-season record of 102 receptions by a tight end stood for 8 years, until it was broken by Jason Witten during the 2012 season. In the 2005 season, he had 78 receptions for 905 receiving yards and two receiving touchdowns in another Pro Bowl season.

Starting late in 2006, Gonzalez began to close in on numerous team and league receiving records. He finished with 73 receptions for 900 receiving yards and five receiving touchdowns and earned his eight consecutive Pro Bowl nomination. In 2006, Gonzalez broke wide receiver Otis Taylor's Chiefs team receiving yards and touchdowns mark, and also passed running back Priest Holmes for the team yards from scrimmage record. In 2007, Gonzalez continued his productivity in spite of the generally poor play of the Chiefs' offense. Though the Chiefs finished at or near the bottom in most major offensive categories, Gonzalez led the Chiefs and all NFL tight ends in receptions (99) and receiving yards (1,172) while being named to his ninth straight Pro Bowl. On October 14, 2007, Gonzalez broke the career touchdown reception record for tight ends previously held by Shannon Sharpe, as well as passing Ozzie Newsome for second in career receiving yards for a tight end. On December 23, 2007, Gonzalez recorded his third season with 1,000 receiving yards, tying him with Kellen Winslow, Todd Christensen, and Shannon Sharpe for most ever by a tight end, and on December 30, 2007, Gonzalez passed Shannon Sharpe for most receptions all time by a tight end. In week 4 of the 2008 season, Gonzalez became NFL all-time leader in receiving yards for a tight end with 10,064, surpassing Shannon Sharpe. He recorded 96 receptions for 1,058 yards and was also elected to his tenth career Pro Bowl. For the fifth time in his career, he earned First Team All-Pro honors. During the 2009 offseason, Gonzalez again approached Chiefs management about a possible trade. Unlike the previous Chiefs management, new Chiefs' GM Scott Pioli told Gonzalez he would see what he could do.

Gonzalez is frequently considered the greatest tight end of all-time. During his career, he broke numerous NFL records for tight ends. Only two of his major records have been broken, most career touchdowns and most 1,000 yard seasons by a tight end. Additionally, he also owns several Chiefs team records and at the time of his retirement, he finished in the top 10 in many receiving categories for any position. He finished 5th in yards, 2nd in receptions, and 6th in touchdowns. On January 26, 2018, the Chiefs announced they would induct Gonzalez into the Chiefs Hall of Fame. He was inducted during halftime of a game during the 2018 season. In his first year of eligibility in 2019, Gonzalez was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. He was named to the NFL 2000s All-Decade team as well as the NFL 100th Anniversary All-Time Team.

THIS IS AN AUTHENTIC HAND AUTOGRAPHED PSA/DNA, JSA AUTHENTICATED CARD. I ONLY SELL AUTHENTIC HAND AUTOGRAPHED MEMORABILIA. I do not sell reprints or facsimile autographs. When you bid on my items you will receive the real deal authentic hand autographed items. You will receive the same signed card that is pictured in the scan. If you have any questions feel free to e-mail me. I combine S&H when multiple items are purchased. I ship items internationally the price for international S&H varies by country. I currently have other rare autographed military and historical signed items available. Please take a look at my other auctions of rare military and historical autographed items.