Tony Gonzalez is making a few things clear, he is retiring at the end of next season and the Atlanta Falcons have unfinished business that needs to be taken care of. As the tight end prepares to enter what he has promised is his final season in the NFL, he believes the Falcons are poised to do something very special this season.
Gonzalez told the Atlanta Journal Constitution that while his son convinced him to return for one more season, he is 100 percent retiring at the end of the year. However, after hearing about a few of the Falcons' rumored offseason moves, he could not turn down the opportunity to give the Super Bowl one more shot.
"Look at this football team that I get to be a part of next year, especially playing with a guy like Matt Ryan, Roddy White and Julio Jones on the outside, we got Steven Jackson as an offseason pick up. Osi Umenyiora on defense, the goes on and on, the amount of talent that we have on this team and the type of run that I think we can make, just like we did this last year," Gonzalez said.
The pickup of Jackson could be what the Falcons need to get past the NFC Championship game. Replacing Michael Turner as the premier running back, Gonzalez believes the team now has the perfect offense. With White and Jones controlling the passing game and Jackson upping the production of the run game, Atlanta could find themselves on another excellent season run.
"Watching Steven Jackson for all of these last years out in St. Louis, he's a beast; just give him the ball and he's going to get yards," Gonzalez said. "The type of attitude that he brings to this team is something that is going to help us a lot; it's going to go a long way because the guys that we have in the locker room already are great."
The biggest question heading into training camp for the Falcons is the competition at the offensive line. After letting go of players like Tyson Clabo, Atlanta could have a few new starters. Gonzalez is confident that head coach Mike Smith makes the best decision has to who gets the starting time.
The last move of the offseason for the Falcons surrounds Ryan and his contract extension. The two sides have been in plenty of discussions for weeks about the size of the new deal. Ryan intends on cutting off negotiations before training camp in order for them not to become a distraction. Gonzalez does not think the ongoing extension will hurt the team's focus.
"I spoke to Matt last week. I believe they're talking. It's going to get done. It doesn't matter. If there is any question whether or not Matt Ryan is the quarterback of the Atlanta Falcons football team, that's a silly question," Gonzalez said.