Asked if his foot is feeling 100 percent, Chargers TE Antonio Gates smiled and said “we're getting there.”
Asked if he expected the old Gates to return, the one who's dazzled year after year and routinely made men miss in the open field, he took it a step further.
“It's definitely going to get back to that,” Gates said. “I think that's what makes me excited, coming to prove I'm still one of the elite guys at this position. That's the challenge for myself …
“As you understand this league and you have experience, you understand how important the offseason is, and it definitely pays off dividends throughout the year. The fact that I am participating in the offseason program, coming here and working my tail off with the rest of the guys, that'll pay off throughout the season.”
Gates has been going in the middle rounds (5th-6th) in early fantasy drafts and could be a very good value there if he can stay healthy. He finished TE7 last year in both standard and PPR formats but was never really himself due to his foot injury.
