Who is Tony Gonzalez? Former NFL star spotted with Jeff Bezos and his space crew moments after spacecraft landing
Former NFL tight end Tony Gonzalez was in attendance when Amazon.com founder Jeff Bezos landed from his space trip on Tuesday.
The entrepreneur flew to the edge of space on a rocket and capsule developed by Blue Origin, a company Bezos founded in 2000. He was joined by his brother Mark, 82-year-old American aviator Wally Funk and 18-year-old Oliver Daemen, son of Dutch millionaire Joes Daemen.
Jeff Bezos' girlfriend, Lauren Sanchez, who was in a relationship with Gonzalez, was also present at the capsule's landing in West Texas. Sanchez and Gonzalez have a son together. On Tuesday, the former tight end got a first-hand look inside the capsule.
Tony Gonzalez played 17 successful seasons in the NFL
The Kansas City Chiefs picked Tony Gonzalez in the first round of the 1997 NFL draft. After two decent seasons, Gonzalez began his ascend, catching 76 passes for 849 yards and 11 touchdowns in his third NFL campaign.
During the 2000 NFL season, Tony Gonzalez caught 93 passes for 1,203 yards and nine touchdowns for the Chiefs. He led the league in receptions in 2004 with 102. After a stellar 12-year stint, the Kansas City Chiefs traded Tony Gonzalez to the Atlanta Falcons in 2009.
While his numbers are up there with the greatest tight ends to ever play the game, Gonzalez didn't find much success in the postseason. In his 17-year career, he only played in one conference championship game.
In 2012, Gonzalez helped the Falcons make it to the NFC Championship game, but they fell short despite an excellent performance from the tight end. During the game against the 49ers, Tony Gonzalez caught eight passes for 78 yards and one touchdown.
Tony Gonzalez only missed one game during his 17-year career. The NFL Hall of Famer was selected to 14 Pro Bowls and was part of the 2000 NFL All-Decade Team. Gonzalez was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2019.
Fox Sports labeled Tony Gonzalez the greatest tight end in NFL history. The Hall of Famer has been working with the network as an NFL studio analyst since retiring from the league.
Gonzalez has been successful on and off the football field. He is now reportedly moving on from his analyst role at FOX Sports to pursue a career in TV and film.