In honor of his achievement, the Chargers celebrated by adopting a goat in Gates's honor. The goat, a nod to the team considering Gates the "greatest of all time" tight end, is named Gatesy after him. Gatesy resides at the San Diego Animal Sanctuary and Farm.

Gates, who caught 116 touchdown passes in a 16-year career spent entirely with the Chargers, is elected alongside defensive end Jared Allen, wide receiver Sterling Sharpe and cornerback Eric Allen.

It didn't take long for Antonio Gates to transfer his Kent State basketball dominance to the NFL. Now he's headed to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Los Angeles Chargers legend Antonio Gates is a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s 2025 class. Many amazing moments popped up in and around the occasion, such as LaDainian Tomlinson’s surprise involvement and Rob Gronkowski throwing out major praise,

Gates consistently provided key catches, especially on third downs, and served as a safety value for Chargers quarterbacks when plays went off script.

Antonio Gates was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame on Thursday. Before it was officially announced to the public, Gates' former teammate and Chargers great LaDainian Tomlinson surprised him with the big news.

Los Angeles Chargers great Antonio Gates was officially enshrined as a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s 2025 class at NFL Honors. Before that much-deserved reveal, though, Gates himself found out about it in a heartwarming fashion.

Antonio Gates is the GOAT when it comes to the tight end position. To mark Gates’ induction in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, the Chargers are celebrating with a goat. Yes, an actual goat. Meet 'Gatesy the Goat,' who was named after the legendary Bolts tight end.