Gates Could Become 3rd Tight End to Reach 11,000 Yards Sunday

San Diego Chargers tight end Antonio Gates needs just 66 receiving yards to pass 11,000 yards on the season, per NFL.com Milestones.

Should he accomplish the feat, the veteran would be just the third tight end in NFL history to do so, per Pro-Football-Reference.com. Only Tony Gonzalez (15,127 yards) and Jason Witten (11,735 yards) own more career receiving yards than Gates (10,934) at the position.

Despite turning 36 years old in June, Gates remains a prominent member of the offense. While his first six games of the season weren't overly impressive, he's notched 138 receiving yards and two touchdowns in the past two weeks.

Gates has also reached paydirt in each of the last three contests and owns five touchdowns overall. The total already matches his output from the entire 2015 campaign.

San Diego has had terrible luck with injuries on offense this season. Not only did they lose Keenan Allen and Danny Woodhead to knee injuries early in the year, but they were deprived of Stevie Johnson and Branden Oliver prior to the regular season.

The injuries have likely played a part in the Chargers' 4-6 start thus far, forcing Gates to the forefront once again and contributing to second-year running back Melvin Gordon's rise after a lackluster rookie campaign.

It may be an uphill battle for the club to earn a playoff bid this season—especially with the 8-2 Oakland Raiders, 7-3 Kansas City Chiefs and 7-3 Denver Broncos ahead of them in the AFC West. Nevertheless, they still have a chance to turn things in the correct direction beginning Sunday in Houston.