Tony Gonzalez is the greatest receiving end of all-time. He leads all tight ends in career receptions, receiving yards and receiving touchdowns. He leads all tight ends in career VBD, and his six seasons as the top fantasy tight end is the most #1 seasons of any tight end. Gonzalez is a future Hall of Famer, and may become the first tight end to be inducted on the first ballot. Whether measured by peak or longevity, it's hard to argue that there's ever been a better receiving tight end than Tony Gonzalez.
Fantasy players have known this for years; the gap between Gonzalez and the other tight ends is enormous. Tony G has more than double the VBD of all but four other tight ends in NFL history. Here's the complete list:
Rk |
Tight End |
VBD |
Years |
Teams |
Positional Rankings |
1 |
Tony Gonzalez |
994 |
1997-2009 |
kan-atl |
1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 2, 2, 2, 5, 7, 7, 19 |
2 |
Shannon Sharpe |
797 |
1990-2003 |
den-rav |
1, 1, 1, 1, 2, 2, 2, 3, 4, 4, 5, 15, 32, 38 |
3 |
Kellen Winslow |
621 |
1979-1987 |
sdg |
1, 1, 1, 2, 4, 4, 12, 23, 37 |
4 |
Todd Christensen |
564 |
1979-1988 |
nyg-rai |
1, 1, 1, 1, 3, 4, 30, 33, 66, 76 |
5 |
Antonio Gates |
530 |
2003-2009 |
sdg |
1, 1, 2, 3, 3, 4, 20 |
6 |
Ozzie Newsome |
485 |
1978-1990 |
cle |
1, 2, 3, 3, 3, 6, 6, 9, 12, 14, 15, 16, 18 |
7 |
Ben Coates |
478 |
1991-2000 |
nwe-rav |
1, 1, 2, 2, 3, 3, 16, 20, 40, 55 |
8 |
Dave Casper |
456 |
1974-1984 |
rai-hou-min |
1, 1, 2, 3, 4, 4, 7, 29, 36, 38, 55 |
9 |
Keith Jackson |
451 |
1988-1996 |
phi-mia-gnb |
1, 2, 2, 2, 4, 4, 5, 7, 42 |
10 |
Jason Witten |
341 |
2003-2009 |
dal |
1, 2, 3, 6, 6, 10, 21 |
11 |
Wesley Walls |
318 |
1989-2003 |
sfo-nor-car-gnb |
2, 2, 4, 6, 6, 8, 11, 14, 23, 35, 56, 61, 67, 98 |
12 |
Rich Caster |
300 |
1970-1982 |
nyj-hou-nor-was |
1, 1, 1, 5, 13, 17, 19, 25, 38, 50, 63, 67, 72 |
13 |
Riley Odoms |
293 |
1972-1983 |
den |
2, 2, 2, 4, 5, 7, 9, 11, 13, 16, 46, 66 |
14 |
Steve Jordan |
275 |
1982-1994 |
min |
3, 3, 5, 6, 6, 6, 8, 10, 12, 19, 35, 56, 68 |
15 |
Bob Tucker |
271 |
1970-1980 |
nyg-min |
1, 3, 4, 7, 9, 9, 12, 14, 21, 26, 38 |
16 |
Brent Jones |
271 |
1987-1997 |
sfo |
1, 3, 3, 3, 4, 9, 13, 15, 20, 34, 89 |
17 |
Mark Bavaro |
267 |
1985-1994 |
nyg-cle-phi |
1, 2, 4, 8, 9, 13, 14, 16, 21 |
18 |
Jay Novacek |
251 |
1985-1995 |
crd-dal |
1, 3, 3, 3, 6, 9, 12, 16, 27, 71, 77 |
19 |
Mickey Shuler |
251 |
1978-1991 |
nyj-phi |
2, 2, 4, 5, 5, 21, 22, 24, 28, 29, 30, 35, 52, 78 |
20 |
Frank Wycheck |
251 |
1993-2003 |
was-hou-ten |
4, 4, 4, 4, 5, 5, 16, 18, 36, 41, 48 |
21 |
Raymond Chester |
243 |
1970-1981 |
rai-clt |
2, 4, 4, 5, 7, 10, 10, 13, 15, 23, 32, 41 |
22 |
Ted Kwalick |
237 |
1969-1977 |
sfo-rai |
2, 2, 3, 22, 24, 53, 59, 66 |
23 |
Eric Green |
235 |
1990-1999 |
pit-mia-rav-nyj |
2, 4, 6, 6, 7, 12, 23, 24, 31, 49 |
24 |
Todd Heap |
216 |
2001-2009 |
rav |
1, 2, 3, 5, 14, 23, 24, 33, 37 |
25 |
Dallas Clark |
212 |
2003-2009 |
clt |
1, 3, 6, 13, 15, 16, 24 |
26 |
Jeremy Shockey |
211 |
2002-2009 |
nyg-nor |
3, 3, 7, 7, 10, 11, 18, 24 |
27 |
Paul Coffman |
201 |
1978-1988 |
gnb-kan-min |
4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 12, 13, 42, 60, 64, 79 |
28 |
Charle Young |
197 |
1973-1985 |
phi-ram-sfo-sea |
1, 2, 3, 12, 13, 19, 25, 26, 28, 28, 33, 34, 42 |
29 |
Rodney Holman |
186 |
1982-1995 |
cin-det |
1, 4, 9, 9, 9, 10, 10, 17, 20, 33, 38, 48, 69, 75 |
30 |
Henry Childs |
183 |
1974-1984 |
atl-nor-ram-gnb |
1, 3, 3, 11, 11, 33, 35, 67, 74 |
31 |
Doug Cosbie |
181 |
1979-1988 |
dal |
3, 5, 5, 6, 7, 18, 19, 43, 53, 53 |
32 |
Chris Cooley |
173 |
2004-2009 |
was |
4, 5, 6, 6, 12, 27 |
33 |
Jimmie Giles |
172 |
1977-1989 |
hou-tam-det-phi |
5, 6, 6, 7, 10, 11, 23, 24, 26, 29, 35, 38, 48 |
34 |
Alge Crumpler |
172 |
2001-2009 |
atl-ten |
3, 5, 5, 7, 8, 14, 20, 34, 37 |
35 |
Dan Ross |
171 |
1979-1986 |
cin-sea-gnb |
4, 5, 6, 10, 15, 37, 41 |
36 |
Jerome Barkum |
169 |
1972-1983 |
nyj |
6, 7, 10, 14, 16, 19, 19, 22, 23, 24, 37, 41 |
37 |
Kellen Winslow Jr. |
156 |
2004-2009 |
cle-tam |
4, 4, 7, 18, 80 |
38 |
Walter White |
154 |
1975-1979 |
kan |
2, 2, 11, 20, 62 |
39 |
Jim R. Mitchell |
151 |
1969-1979 |
atl |
2, 3, 5, 8, 12, 14, 19, 31, 34, 35 |
40 |
Charlie Sanders |
144 |
1968-1977 |
det |
4, 5, 6, 6, 8, 11, 13, 31 |
41 |
Rickey Dudley |
139 |
1996-2004 |
rai-cle-tam |
3, 3, 9, 12, 13, 33, 51, 66, 83 |
42 |
Freddie Jones |
138 |
1997-2004 |
sdg-crd |
3, 4, 5, 5, 11, 13, 16, 21 |
43 |
Billy Joe DuPree |
128 |
1973-1983 |
dal |
3, 4, 7, 8, 12, 13, 14, 26, 31, 31, 46 |
44 |
Marv Cook |
123 |
1989-1995 |
nwe-chi-ram |
1, 6, 8, 29, 30, 34, 68 |
45 |
Jerry Smith |
118 |
1965-1977 |
was |
1, 4, 7, 13, 22, 25, 37, 58 |
46 |
Russ Francis |
114 |
1975-1988 |
nwe-sfo |
3, 3, 7, 8, 11, 12, 13, 16, 17, 17, 30, 33, 35 |
47 |
Joe Senser |
110 |
1980-1984 |
min |
2, 8, 15, 53 |
48 |
Johnny Mitchell |
105 |
1992-1996 |
nyj-dal |
5, 6, 10, 23, 82 |
49 |
Randy McMichael |
101 |
2002-2009 |
mia-ram |
4, 5, 8, 9, 11, 17, 30, 52 |
50 |
Pete Metzelaars |
90 |
1982-1997 |
sea-buf-car-det |
5, 7, 7, 9, 13, 21, 25, 29, 34, 37, 41, 41, 45, 47, 58, 66 |
51 |
Bob Trumpy |
88 |
1968-1977 |
cin |
6, 6, 7, 9, 14, 18, 20, 22 |
52 |
Vernon Davis |
88 |
2006-2009 |
sfo |
2, 12, 26, 27 |
53 |
Mark Chmura |
87 |
1993-1999 |
gnb |
2, 8, 8, 21, 39, 67, 74 |
54 |
Jackie Harris |
86 |
1990-2001 |
gnb-tam-ten-dal |
5, 7, 9, 11, 12, 16, 17, 17, 27, 33, 34, 35 |
55 |
Jean Fugett |
86 |
1972-1979 |
dal-was |
4, 7, 8, 8, 20, 30, 31, 39 |
56 |
Marcus Pollard |
85 |
1995-2008 |
clt-det-sea-atl |
2, 6, 9, 11, 12, 15, 15, 20, 30, 47, 53, 59, 101, 101 |
57 |
Pete Holohan |
82 |
1981-1992 |
sdg-ram-kan-cle |
4, 5, 8, 10, 17, 18, 27, 28, 29, 31, 63, 74 |
58 |
Mike Barber |
79 |
1976-1985 |
hou-ram-den |
5, 6, 10, 19, 25, 32, 37, 59, 67, 72 |
59 |
Jackie Smith |
73 |
1963-1978 |
crd-dal |
5, 7, 10, 11, 11, 24, 41, 51, 77 |
60 |
Derrick Ramsey |
70 |
1978-1987 |
rai-nwe-det |
3, 9, 13, 30, 34, 49, 75, 79, 146 |
61 |
Ethan Horton |
69 |
1985-1994 |
kan-rai-was |
2, 10, 12, 14, 22, 26, 43, 54 |
62 |
Emery Moorehead |
69 |
1977-1988 |
nyg-den-chi |
8, 8, 17, 20, 21, 22, 27, 43, 53, 62, 67, 74 |
63 |
David Hill |
66 |
1976-1987 |
det-ram |
5, 9, 9, 11, 14, 14, 17, 25, 31, 31, 35, 52 |
64 |
Robert Awalt |
65 |
1987-1993 |
crd-dal-buf |
2, 10, 18, 36, 56, 57, 64 |
65 |
Tony McGee |
60 |
1993-2003 |
cin-dal-nyg |
5, 9, 10, 12, 13, 18, 24, 25, 31, 37, 124 |
66 |
Brent Celek |
58 |
2007-2009 |
phi |
4, 32, 43 |
67 |
Bubba Franks |
57 |
2000-2008 |
gnb-nyj |
4, 7, 9, 19, 22, 33, 39, 39, 70 |
68 |
Kyle Brady |
57 |
1995-2007 |
nyj-jax-nwe |
6, 10, 14, 18, 19, 21, 27, 29, 33, 38, 50, 52, 78 |
69 |
Ken Dilger |
56 |
1995-2004 |
clt-tam |
6, 7, 8, 10, 16, 18, 21, 22, 26, 33 |
70 |
Owen Daniels |
56 |
2006-2009 |
htx |
5, 7, 14, 17 |
71 |
John Spagnola |
53 |
1979-1989 |
phi-sea-gnb |
4, 10, 10, 11, 15, 29, 51, 52, 58, 71 |
72 |
Chad Lewis |
53 |
1997-2005 |
phi-ram |
5, 10, 15, 25, 30, 33, 35, 64, 100 |
73 |
Willie Frazier |
51 |
1964-1975 |
hou-sdg-kan |
3, 17, 34, 51 |
74 |
Cam Cleeland |
51 |
1998-2005 |
nor-nwe-ram |
3, 24, 26, 46, 58, 60, 76 |
75 |
Eric Johnson |
50 |
2001-2007 |
sfo-nor |
6, 15, 20, 23, 27 |
76 |
Heath Miller |
49 |
2005-2009 |
pit |
8, 8, 12, 13, 15 |
77 |
Calvin Magee |
47 |
1985-1988 |
tam |
7, 8, 30, 47 |
78 |
Visanthe Shiancoe |
46 |
2003-2009 |
nyg-min |
7, 9, 32, 49, 57, 61, 73 |
79 |
Junior Miller |
46 |
1980-1984 |
atl-nor |
2, 16, 21, 49, 54 |
80 |
Keith McKeller |
45 |
1987-1993 |
buf |
7, 8, 38, 56, 61, 75, 86 |
81 |
Milt Morin |
45 |
1966-1975 |
cle |
8, 10, 11, 15, 15, 47 |
82 |
Jermaine Wiggins |
44 |
2000-2006 |
nyj-nwe-clt-car-min |
8, 13, 19, 25, 30, 59, 60 |
83 |
Don Hasselbeck |
44 |
1977-1985 |
nwe-rai-min-nyg |
5, 24, 27, 32, 40, 47, 51, 61, 85 |
84 |
Reuben Gant |
42 |
1974-1980 |
buf |
5, 9, 27, 27, 39, 51, 54 |
85 |
Keith Krepfle |
40 |
1975-1982 |
phi-atl |
7, 8, 14, 17, 20, 40, 48, 66 |
86 |
Hoby Brenner |
38 |
1981-1993 |
nor |
7, 9, 11, 13, 17, 20, 28, 31, 32, 32, 34, 43, 56 |
87 |
Desmond Clark |
38 |
1999-2009 |
den-mia-chi |
5, 8, 13, 14, 16, 28, 30, 32, 41, 78, 92 |
88 |
David Sloan |
36 |
1995-2003 |
det-nor |
6, 9, 15, 30, 32, 39, 56, 64, 116 |
89 |
Pete Mitchell |
32 |
1995-2002 |
jax-nyg-det |
7, 9, 12, 14, 19, 28, 29, 72 |
90 |
Clint Didier |
31 |
1982-1989 |
was-gnb |
6, 15, 18, 33, 35, 43, 51, 52 |
91 |
Jay Riemersma |
30 |
1997-2004 |
buf-pit |
8, 8, 10, 13, 26, 28, 44, 50 |
92 |
Tom Mitchell |
29 |
1966-1977 |
rai-clt-sfo |
6, 12, 16, 16, 21, 23, 24, 30 |
93 |
Troy Drayton |
29 |
1993-2000 |
ram-mia-kan |
7, 10, 11, 15, 21, 22, 24, 46 |
94 |
Eric Sievers |
28 |
1981-1990 |
sdg-ram-nwe |
5, 12, 16, 17, 21, 28, 47, 70, 75, 151 |
95 |
Ferrell Edmunds |
28 |
1988-1994 |
mia-sea |
8, 9, 15, 21, 30, 36, 59 |
96 |
Kerry Cash |
27 |
1991-1996 |
clt-rai-chi |
6, 11, 22, 32, 70, 72 |
97 |
Doug Marsh |
27 |
1980-1986 |
crd |
7, 10, 22, 25, 29, 45, 45 |
98 |
Greg Olsen |
26 |
2007-2009 |
chi |
9, 10, 23 |
99 |
L.J. Smith |
25 |
2003-2009 |
phi |
9, 9, 14, 26, 28, 38, 83 |
100 |
Zeke Mowatt |
24 |
1983-1991 |
nyg-nwe |
7, 25, 26, 32, 36, 46, 52, 65 |
Questions, suggestions and comments are always welcome to [email protected].