“Tony saved my life. There's no doubt,” Ken Hunter, a shipping company manager and Chargers fan, said in a phone interview from Huntington Beach.

“Tony came up behind me and gave me the Heimlich maneuver. Thank God he was there.”

Gonzalez, a nine-time Pro Bowl selection who has set numerous NFL records, was having dinner with his wife, brother and 5-week-old daughter at Capone's restaurant in Huntington Beach last Thursday night. Hunter, 45, was dining with his girlfriend at the next table when suddenly a piece of meat got stuck in his throat.

Gonzalez jumped out of his chair and came up behind the stricken man and began to perform the Heimlich maneuver.

“After just a few seconds, the piece of meat popped out,” Hunter said.

Hunter is a lifelong fan of the Chargers, and plans to be at the game when the Chiefs are in San Diego on Nov. 9. “I'm Tony's No. 1 fan now,” he said.

And what will this longtime follower of the Chargers do if they're ahead by four or five points in the final minute and Gonzalez runs into the end zone and leaps up for what would be the game-winning touchdown for K.C.?

“I'm going to be yelling for Tony to catch the ball,” Hunter said. “I think all my friends will understand.”

– ASSOCIATED PRESS