Christopher John Dressel (born February 7, 1961) is an American former professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

player who was a

tight end The tight end (TE) is an offense (sports), offensive position in American football, arena football, and Canadian football. It is a hybrid that combines the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a receiver (football), receiv ...

and h-back in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL). Born and raised in

Placentia, California Placentia () is a city in northern Orange County, California, United States. Its population was 51,233 during the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, up from 46,488 in the 2000 United States Census, 2000 census. This includes the community ...

, Dressel played scholastically at El Dorado High School. He played collegiately for the

Stanford Cardinal The Stanford Cardinal are the college athletics in the United States, athletic teams that represent Stanford University. Stanford's program has won 138 National Collegiate Athletic Association, NCAA team championships, the List of NCAA schools ...

, where, as a senior, he was honored by the

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as a third-team

All-American The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

. Dressel was selected by the

Houston Oilers The Houston Oilers were a professional American football team that played in Houston, Texas, from its founding in 1960 Houston Oilers season, 1960 to 1996 Houston Oilers season, 1996. The Houston Oilers began play as a charter member of the Ame ...

in the third-round of the

1983 NFL draft The 1983 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 26–27, 1983, at the New York Sh ...

, and started 30 of 32 games his first two years. He was with Houston for two more years, again appearing in all 32 games, but with no starts. In 1987 he played in one game for the

San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners and nicknamed the Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member ...

as a

replacement player In professional sports, a replacement player is an sportsperson, athlete who is not a member of the league's players association and plays during a labor dispute such as a Strike action, strike or Lockout (industry), lockout, serving as a strikebre ...

during the NFLPA strike. He was out of the NFL completely in 1988. In 1989 Dressel resurrected his career, initially with the

Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) West division. Established in 1959 ...

for seven games, then with the

New York Jets The New York Jets are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Jets compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The team p ...

for the last eight games of the season. During the 1990 and 1991 seasons with the Jets he appeared in 15 games each year, starting a total of 10 of them. He finished his career back with the 49ers for one game in 1992. Dressel recorded 111 pass receptions for 1098 yards and 8 touchdowns during his 9 years in the NFL. After his football career, Dressel pursued a real estate career in San Francisco.

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Dressel, Chris 1961 births Living people American football tight ends Sportspeople from Placentia, California Players of American football from Orange County, California Stanford Cardinal football players Houston Oilers players San Francisco 49ers players Kansas City Chiefs players New York Jets players NFL replacement players