Tony Gonzalez ain't ready to yield his "greatest of all time"-tight end label to Rob Gronkowski ... telling TMZ Sports his career is just as legendary as the Patriots'!!!
"Hey, we're both great," Gonzalez said at LAX on Monday night ... "We're both the G.O.A.T.s!"
Gronk just officially retired two months ago ... and many have wondered if he did enough in his 9-year career to take the best tight end EVER moniker away from Gonzalez.
The numbers don't seem close at first glance but remember, Gronk only played 9 seasons while Tony played 17.
Gronk -- 521 receptions, 7,861 receiving yards and 79 receiving TDs (plus 3 Super Bowls).
Gonzalez -- 1,325 receptions, 15,127 receiving yards and 111 receiving TDs.
Tony says "there's a great argument" for Gronk to be called the NFL's best ever ... but it sure doesn't seem like he's the one making it!!!
By the way, we also asked Tony about his ex-Chiefs team and how they'll get over all the drama surrounding Tyreek Hill ... and Gonzalez tells us K.C. is going to get through it all just fine.