Antonio Gates Injury: Is Chargers TE Finally a Reliable Fantasy Player?

San Diego Chargers tight end Antonio Gates will finally return to the field today against the New York Jets after missing three games with a lingering foot injury.

While he will likely see the majority of his playing time in the red zone, if he feels healthy enough early in the game then he should participate even more.

All of this is good news for Gates' fantasy owners who have been waiting patiently for the top tight end to return to the Chargers' starting lineup since Week 3. He's easily as close to 100 percent as he's been all year and as long as he starts off well, he should be good to go from here on out.

If you have Gates then you probably have a few reservations about giving him the start this week and rightfully so. The type of foot injury he's been dealing with—torn scar tissue related to the ruptured plantar fascia he suffered last season—can be reaggravated without much effort.

However, Gates' plan this whole time was to sit out until after San Diego's Week 6 bye, believing that he'd be healthy enough to start in Week 7 and for the rest of the season if he did so.

Gates is too good of a player to risk benching against the Jets this Sunday, especially considering how many targets he's likely to get with starting San Diego receiver Vincent Jackson being relegated to Revis Island.

If you've spent the last few weeks with Gates stashed away on your bench, today is the day to shake him off and give him the start. If he was still in significant pain, he wouldn't be active.

Any time Gates is guaranteed to be on the field, he's a Top Five fantasy tight end. If he makes it through today's game pain-free, you shouldn't have any questions about starting him every week until the end of the season.