The Pro Football Hall of Fame announced the 15 finalists for the Class of 2019 and former Falcons tight end Tony Gonzalez made the cut.
Gonzalez, who spent five seasons in Atlanta from 2009-13, would be a first-ballot Hall of Famer if he is voted in this year. Gonzalez started all 80 games during his five seasons with the Falcons and caught 409 passes for 4,187 yards and 35 touchdowns during that time. He was named to four Pro Bowls and one All-Pro team while playing in Atlanta.
Prior to joining the Falcons, Gonzalez earned the reputation as one of the best tight ends in league history while playing for the Kansas City Chiefs, who drafted him with the 13th-overall pick in the 1997 NFL Draft. While with the Chiefs, Gonzalez was named to 10 Pro Bowls and earned five All-Pro nods.
Gonzalez's 1,325 career receptions are the second-most in NFL history behind only Jerry Rice; his 15,127 career receiving yards are sixth-most all time and his 111 receiving touchdowns are eight-most all time.
The final members of the Class of 2019 will be during "NFL Honors," which will take place on Saturday, Feb. 2 - the night before Super Bowl LIII - at 9 p.m. ET on CBS.
To see the entire list of finalists for the Class of 2019, click here.
