Jan 13, 2013; Atlanta, GA, USA; Atlanta Falcons tight end Tony Gonzalez (88) takes the field prior to facing the Seattle Seahawks in the NFC divisional playoff game at the Georgia Dome. Mandatory Credit: Daniel Shirey-USA TODAY Sports

Former Kansas City Chiefs TE Tony Gonzalez has finally tasted playoff victory.

The Atlanta Falcons have defeated the Seattle Seahawks in yet another playoff thriller in what is turning out to be one of the most exciting weekends of playoff football in years.

The former Chiefs great had six catches for 51 yards and a touchdown.

But his most important reception, perhaps the biggest catch of his career, came on the penultimate offensive play for the Falcons.

Atlanta stunningly fell behind with just about 30 seconds to go in the fourth quarter. The Seahawks led 28-27 with the Falcons taking over at their own 28. Matt Ryan then completed a 22 yard pass to Harry Douglas, putting his team on the 50.

Then it was Tony time.

With 13 seconds left, Ryan hit Tony G. on a 19 yard pass over the middle. Now with the ball on the Seattle 31, the Falcons sent out the FG unit. The first kick was no good but Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll called timeout. The next kick was right down the middle.

While some Chiefs fans were sad to see Tony go, it is hard not to be thrilled for him now. The Chiefs may not be in the playoffs this year but I suggest that fans of the red and gold adopt the Atlanta Falcons as their playoff team this year. Tony will retire a Chief. Let’s cheer for him to do it with a Super Bowl ring.

So we begin the 2012 season, Falcons at Chiefs.

Now what do I mean by Pressure Points? To put this in as simple as terms as possible, no team is perfect and the Falcons are no exception to that rule.

As I’m sure most will agree, on offense, the Falcons are an excellent team, led by a rising star quarterback, a very talented receiving corps, solid pass blocking and a fairly decent ground game that features Michael Turner.  Matt Ryan is a quarterback who can make plays and possesses the necessary leadership and skills to can carry his team through adversity. Roddy White is widely considered to be among the league’s elite receivers.

Second year receiver Julio Jones has the potential to be just as dynamic as White if not moreso. Similarly, slot receiver Harry Douglas is a guy who can destroy you when left uncovered. Future HOF’er TE Tony Gonzalez can be counted on to catch a slew of balls each year, routinely make third down conversions, and help move the chains on a consistent basis.  Last season, Michael Turner rushed for 1340 yards averaging 4.5 yards a pop.

In a nutshell, the Falcons field a very potent offense stocked with playmakers.

The Falcons do not have many weak points but there are some chinks in the Falcons offensive armor. The first to note is perhaps the most obvious. Matt Ryan, just like any quarterback, is less of a threat when pressured.

Fortunately for Ryan, the Falcons offensive line has, as a unit, is pretty good. That said, their weakest link along that line however is also the most important: left tackle, which continues to be undermanned by likes of Sam Baker and Will Svitek. During this past offseason, the only significant move the Falcons made to address their offensive line was draft Peter Konz as the eventual replacement for 34-year-old C Todd McClure. Konz was expected to be the Falcons starter RG but has so far been unable to win it away from the heretofor lackluster Garrett Reynolds.

The Falcons offense, while solid in just about every respect, does have some concerns when it comes to veterans at or nearing the downside/end of their career. As already mentioned, McClure is 34. Tony Gonzalez is 36 (and considerably slower these days). Similarly, White, now 30, while still a productive and dangerous receiver, is also not as explosive as he once was.

Michael Turner, also 30, has been a workhouse for the Falcons, serving in the role of a true feature back (almost an anachronism these days), touching the ball nearly 1200 times over the last 4 seasons. Toward the end of last season, Turner’s production began to drop off noticeably. One has to wonder, like so many traditional feature backs, how much he has left in the tank. The Falcons did not do anything of any significance during the offseason to address this concern either.

With Turner, the Falcons are essentially one dimensional in the rushing attack. According to Football Outsiders stats, in 2011, Turner was most efficient when running inside the right tackle (ranking ninth) and outside the left tackle (ranking 12th).  Other than the aforementioned two lanes, Turner ranked towards the bottom of league in efficiency. In fact, the Falcons run game as a whole ranked 27th in efficiency. To perhaps put this is even better perspective, Turner’s overall efficiency ranked statistically below that of Jackie Battle’s last season, once again according to Football Outsiders.

Let’s recap the Falcons pressure points on offense.

Along the offensive line, I believe one can fairly say they are highly suspect at Left Tackle and Right Guard, and treading water with an aging Center.  Among their receiving corps, Tony Gonzalez seems to have slowed down considerably and Roddy White, while still good, seems to have lost a step. Similarly, at RB, Michael Turner’s tread is starting to showing signs of wear.

Now let’s talk about the Falcon’s defense.

I’ll start off by saying that the free agency acquisition of Asante Samuel (age 31), being paired up with Brent Grimes (age 29), gives Atlanta a “respect worthy” secondary.  I’d even go so far as to say that Grimes is probably one of the most under-rated CBs in the league. In terms of defending specific receivers, in 2011 according to Football Outsiders, the Falcons ranked, respectively, 30th, 12th, second, first, and eighth against #1 WR, #2 WR, Other WR, TE, and RB.

Overall, Football Outsiders ranked the Falcons as the 11th most efficient pass defense and now with the acquisition of Samuel, one might think there’s good reason to think they will be even better this season.

At linebacker, the Falcons defense took its biggest hit during the offseason with the loss of Curtis Lofton to free agency. Lofton had led the Falcons in tackles for the past two seasons and was a vocal leader for the team. So, I’ll just come right out and say the loss of Lofton is probably the most significant hit to the Falcons D unit and I rather expect that the loss of his presence will be felt in both tangible and intangible ways this season.

The Falcons’ front four on D are also pretty good. John Abraham (age 34) continues to man the RDE spot, and Ray Edwards (age 27) seems to be holding things down at LDE pretty well as well. Abraham is a perennial sack machine, last year getting 9.5 total. For his part, Edwards had somewhat of a down year and managed only 3.5 sacks. I’m inclined to attribute Edwards drop off in sacks largely to him needing time to acclimate to the Falcons defense and coaching staff, having come from the Vikings just the year prior.

Against the run, Football Outsiders ranked the Falcons DL as the third most efficient unit in the league last season.  They ranked #2 in stuff efficiency, 17th against power runs and 2nd level, and 20th against open field runs. Breaking this down even further along the gaps, the Falcons ranked seventh in defending runs outside the LE, fifth at defending runs that targeted the left A gap, 25th against runs that went between the guards, first against the right A gap, and second against runs outside the RE.

So there you have it. The weak points of the Falcons defense seem to be few. I really only potentially see a couple (if any?), the biggest of those being the loss of MLB Lofton and to what extent Dent and the rest of the Falcons defense can compensate for the void left. The other weakness seems to be their difficulty at stopping runs up the middle. Lastly, and this is somewhat of minor point, they seem to struggle some at tackling runners once they break through the line. I suspect that the loss of leading tackler Lofton may exacerbate this apparent weakness even further.

So there you have it, Addicts. I’ve laid out, to the best of my ability, where the Falcons weaknesses lie. Now it’s your turn to play coach and tell me what you do to exploit these perceived flaws? For example, with Hali out, who do you rush against Baker/Svitek?  Do you swap Houston to the other side? What role would you like see to Eric Berry in—guarding Gonzalez or rushing the passer? On the other side of the line, what is your plan of attack against the formidable Falcons D?

Sound off!!

Ladies and Gentlemen, Boys and Girls, it’s finally here. The NFL season is upon us and we can now officially say it’s “game week”. The preseason is officially in the rearview and the 53 man roster has been set (at least for now). It’s time to stop talking hypotheticals and actually look at this week’s match up. For the Kansas City Chiefs that first match up comes against the Atlanta Falcons.

The Falcons, as we currently know them with Thomas Dimitroff as GM, Mike Smith as the head coach, and Matt Ryan as the starting quarter back, have been together since the 2008 season when all three first came to Atlanta. In those four seasons the Falcons have been one of the better teams in the NFL. During that span they have gone 43-21 (67.2%) with three playoff births and have finished with a winning record in all four seasons. The Falcons have been especially good at home where they are 26-6 (81.3%). On the road they have still been a good team going 17-15 (53.1%). Despite having a winning record on the road, I think most Chiefs fans like their odds at home a lot more than they would if the Chiefs had to travel to Atlanta to face “Matty Ice” and the Falcons.

A great deal has been made about stopping the Falcons offense without the suspended Tamba Hali and the pressure he imposes on the quarterback. Another major concern for KC fans is the health of the KC secondary where Brandon Flowers may or may not play and Kendrick Lewis has already been ruled out. So I thought I’d take a look at the Falcons over the past four years and see if I could find a recipe for beating them. I started by looking at how getting to Matt Ryan effects the Falcons.

I specifically looked at the difference in winning percentage between games where Ryan was sacked 2 or less times versus games where he was sacked 3 or more times. I also broke down the winning percentages for those same categories when the Falcons were on the road. Here is what I found:

In games where Atlanta allows 2 or less sacks they are 35-15 (70.0%).

In road games where Atlanta allows 2 or less sacks they are 13-9 (59.1%).

In games where Atlanta allows 3 or more sacks they are 8-6 (57.1%).

In road games where Atlanta allows 3 or more sacks they are 4-6 (40.0%).

A drop in road winning percentage from 59.1% to 40.0% when on the road is note worthy. So getting constant pressure on Ryan does help tip the scales to the home team’s favor. In this regard, losing Tamba Hali for this game will hurt the Chiefs. However, as you will see in a minute, this difference in winning percentage is actually the least significant of the four areas I looked at. I think you’ll find the other three slightly more encouraging.

Next I looked at how Matt Ryan’s passing totals effect the Falcons’ winning percentage. There is a valid concern that Ryan may rack up big stats against a banged up KC secondary, so I broke it down to games where Ryan threw for under 250 yards versus games where he threw for 250 yards or more. Here is what I found:

In games where Ryan threw for under 250 yards the Falcons are 29-7 (80.5%).

In road games where Ryan threw for under 250 yards the Falcons are 12-5 (70.6%).

In games where Ryan threw for 250 yards or more the Falcons are 13-12 (52.0%).

In road games where Ryan threw for 250 yards or more the Falcons are 5-10 (33.3%).

These numbers caught me by surprise. The Falcons’ road winning percentage is over 30 points higher when Matt Ryan passes for fewer yards. I went in expecting the winning percentage to be skewered a little by the fact that QBs often rack up big totals in losses because they are passing a lot to try and come from behind. What I wasn’t expecting was to find that the Falcons have only won five road games in four years where Ryan has thrown for 250 yards or more. To be fair to Ryan, three of those five wins came last season. So it appears as he develops as a QB he is more likely to carry his team. However, the stats still say that the Falcons’ game plan for winning on the road doesn’t usually include Ryan winging the ball all over the field. That’s good news for the Chiefs and their banged up secondary. The logical conclusion then is that the Falcons rely more on their run game when trying to win games on the road. That’s where we’ll take a look next.

I specifically looked at the difference in winning percentage in games where the Falcons rushed the ball for 100 yards or more versus games where they rushed for under 100 yards. Here is what I found:

In games where Atlanta rushed for 100 yards or more they are 29-8 (78.4%).

In road games where Atlanta rushed for 100 yards or more they are 12-6 (66.7%).

In games where Atlanta rushed for under 100 yards they are 14-13 (51.9%).

In road games where Atlanta rushed for under 100 yards they are 5-9 (35.7%).

So basically, when the Falcons rush for 100 yards or more on the road, their odds of winning almost double. They win two out of three games when they rush for 100 yards but they lose about two out of three when they don’t (on the road). That’s a pretty significant stat. I’d say that of the three stats we’ve looked at so far it’s the most significant. I feel confident saying that KC’s ability to stop the Atlanta run game will have a major impact on the game. One plus for KC in this area is that their two starting 3-4 DEs (Glenn Dorsey and Tyson Jackson) were the top rated at their position at stopping the run last year. That’s good news for KC fans. If Derrick Johnson isn’t able to play then that will be a blow to the KC run defense and the other players will have to step up to fill his void if they hope to win this important battle.

Finally, I thought I should look at the opposite side of the ball. So I decided to simply look at points allowed by the Atlanta defense. I looked at Atlanta’s winning percentage when they allow 24 points or less versus when they allow 25 points or more. Here is what I found:

In games where Atlanta allowed 24 points or less they are 38-7 (84.4%).

In road games where Atlanta allowed 24 points or less they are 16-5 (76.2%).

In games where Atlanta allowed 25 points or more they are 5-14 (26.3%).

In road games where Atlanta allowed 25 point or more they are 1-10 (9.1%).

Wow. Just….wow. In four years the Falcons have only won ONE road game where they allowed over 24 points. We’re not talking about the KC offense having to score 45 points, just 25. Not only do the Falcons practically NEVER win when they allow over 24 points on the road, they are VERY GOOD on the road when they allow 24 points or less. A 76.2 winning percentage on the road is more than impressive. We have now found the most significant factor in the KC/Atlanta game. The KC offense must score points if they want to win. The numbers say that if KC can score over 24 points that their odds of winning jump from 24% up to 91%. That’s about as cut and dry as it gets.

The good news for KC fans is that the starting offense has looked about as good as it ever has during the preseason since Matt Cassel arrived in KC. The run game looks strong and new offensive coordinator Brian Daboll seems to have a good system and relationship going with Cassel that will allow him to play to his strengths.

So in conclusion, the loss of Tamba Hali and the injuries to KC’s secondary are important and will have an effect on the game. However, it doesn’t mean that KC can’t execute a game plan that is proven to beat the Falcons. If the Chiefs can stop the run on defense and score points on offense then history says they have an excellent shot at beating the Falcons. That should give hope to all KC fans.

As always, thanks for reading and GO CHIEFS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Poor Tony G.

The Atlanta Falcons got curb stomped by the New York Giants today 24-2, knocking them out of the playoffs.

It was the same old story for former Chiefs TE and future Hall of Famer Tony Gonzalez. For a guy that seems like he’s done just about everything in his career, Gonzalez has never won a playoff game in his illustrious career.

Tony G just completed his 15th NFL season and has recently signed on with Atlanta to come back for a 16th. He had a bit of a resurgence this season, catching 80 balls for 875 yards and 7 TD’s.

Gonzalez had four receptions for 44 yards today in Atlanta’s loss.

If there is any guy in the NFL who deserves a break in the playoffs, it’s Tony G. Here’s hoping his 16th time is a charm.

The Kansas City Chiefs are interested in speaking to Atlanta Falcons Offensive Coordinator Mike Mularkey about their head coaching vacancy, according to Ryan Wilson of CBS Sports.com

Mularkey is an interesting name. He’s been around the league for a while and was the head coach of the Buffalo Bills from 2004-2005. He led the Bills to a 9-7 record in his first season but the team fell to 5-11 the following year. It should be mentioned that Mularkey was working with J.P. Losman and Kelly Holcomb at QB. Following the 2005 season, Mularkey resigned saying he did not agree with the direction the organization was moving. His first season as head coach was the last time the Bills have had a winning record.

Mularkey then spent some time with a team making more disastrous decisions in Miami (Nick Saban) before moving to Atlanta.

I think Scott Pioli will take a hard, hard look at Mularkey. I feel like he is a guy who has a lot of promise who kept getting mixed up with organizations making bone-headed decisions. After he left the Bills, they went straight into the crapper. While in Miami, he got caught up in the Saban business and then was demoted to TE coach after Cam Cameron came in and decided he wanted to call his own plays.

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Former Kansas City Chiefs TE and future Hall of Famer Tony Gonzalez has signed a one-year contract extension with the Atlanta Falcons, according to Jay Glazer of Fox Sports.

I saw some Chiefs fans around the net hoping that Gonzalez might return to KC to play along Tony Moeaki for one final season at Arrowhead.

Well, he will be playing at Arrowhead next season, but he’ll be playing for the Falcons.

Gonzalez said when he was traded to Atlanta that he would like to retire a Chief so regardless of what happens next year, Gonzalex will likely sign with the Chiefs one last time before he hangs them up.

Gonzo has 79 catches for 867 yards and seven touchdowns this year. He’ll return next year for his 16th NFL season.

Congrats to Tony on his new contract and his continued success.

What do you think, Addicts? Will the Arrowhead faithful give Tony a warm welcome next season?

Last April in the 2011 NFL Draft, the Atlanta Falcons made big waves by making a big trade with the Cleveland Browns to move up to take WR Julio Jones out of Alabama.

The Falcons gave up a boatload to get Jones. I was at the draft covering it for Arrowhead Addict and I was shocked at the time. I thought it was a colossally stupid trade and that the Falcons gave up way too much. After all, this was a receiver we were talking about, not a QB.

The Falcons moved from #27 to #6. To do so, they traded that 27th pick,  as well as their second and fourth round picks in 2011 and first and fourth round picks in 2012.

Before making the move, Falcons GM Thomas Dimitroff called up his old friend Bill Belichick to ask his advice.

According to the book “War Room’’ by Michael Holley, Belichick told Dimitroff to stay at #27 and to draft, you guessed it, Jonathan Baldwin.

More after the jump.

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If you haven’t heard yet, teams other than the Kansas City Chiefs are picking in the 2011 NFL Draft.  In fact, those teams play a very important role in the Chiefs’ draft since the Chiefs don’t pick in the top 5 this year.  Who the 20 teams before us pick can have a significant impact on who we draft.  So, for those wondering why I don’t think AJ Green or Julio Jones will be there for us at 21, take a look at one way I see the first round of the Draft going.
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Source: nfl.com

One of the less talked about concerns of the NFL lockout potentially wiping out the entire 2011 season is the impact it could have on the careers of certain players.

The average career of an NFL football player is dramatically short and while some guys seem to be able to play for longer stretches, father time eventually catches them all.

Former Chiefs TE Tony Gonzalez is one of the luck few NFL players who has been playing the game at a high level for a very long time. Still, even Gonzalez knows the end of his career is drawing near and that is part of the reason he requested to be traded out of Kansas City when it became apparent the Chiefs were a number of years from a Super Bowl run. Gonzalez, who has never won a playoff game, got his wish and is making one last run of things with the Atlanta Falcons.

That run could come to an end if the 2011 season is canceled.

In an interview with Clifton Brown of Sporting News, Gonzalez indicated that he was unlikely to return should the 2011 season vanish in a sea of litigation.

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Source : Yardbarker.com

The Kansas City Chiefs are out of the tournament and it will likely make watching this weekend’s games a little bit harder for the Arrowhead Faithful.

Still, sporting events are always more fun when you have someone to root for. I usually pick an AFC team I like once the Chiefs are eliminated from contention but this year I am switching things up

For the rest of the playoffs, I’m going to be an Atlanta Falcons fan.

I’m rooting for Atlanta because of Tony Gonzalez.

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Source: Yardbarker.com

The preseason is all about making an impression on the coaching staff. Some players are fighting for starting spots while others are fighting to make the team. Regardless of each player’s situation, preseason is the time to seize any and all opportunities. Those who fail to do so will find themselves on the bench or worse, on the streets.

Each Monday during the preseason, I will visit which players I thought helped themselves. Later, I will tell you who I think hurt their chances.

And we’re off.

1. Jamaal Charles

While Charles certainly isn’t fighting it out for a roster spot, he is in competition with Thomas Jones and Dexter McCluster for playing time. Charles went to work on Friday night averaging over 9 yards per carry. He showed that last year’s performance was not an anomaly and that he is the most talented back on the roster. He did look a little rusty at times. There were a couple of runs that he probably could have taken to the house if he was in midseason form but some rustiness is be expected in his first live action of the preseason. Charles will be just fine.

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Source: Yardbarker.com

Some people almost seem to take delight in misery.The welcome it like an old friend, put it up in their guest bedroom and make it an omelet for breakfast. Such is the plight of the Kansas City Chiefs fan.

Before last night’s game against the Falcons was even over, I witnessed a number of people already stepping up to the ledge. Step back. It wasn’t as bad as they are telling you.

Some of the local media, as well as many fans, are claiming last night was more of the same from the Chiefs. While we did see some of the same mistakes we often saw last season, I think to compare this version of the Chiefs to the 2009 version is folly.

Most of the early reviews can be boiled down to; Charles and McCluster are good and everyone else is bad. Upon first viewing, I can see where someone might think that. I, however, have done my due diligence. I watched the first half again last night and again this morning. Having slept on it and taken in another viewing this morning, I am going to go a little deeper and tell you what I saw that you might not have caught in a single viewing.

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It wasn’t pretty but the Kansas City Chiefs weren’t utterly terrible in their first preseason game. There is a lot of work yet to be done but the Chiefs didn’t show us enough either way to declare the 2010 season lost.

The first half of the first preseason game is in the books. The Chiefs didn’t look great but they didn’t look terrible either. I would say they look average so far and for this team, that is a step in the right direction.

Here are some notes:

*Matt Cassel didn’t really get a chance to throw very much.He had very few passes down field before checking out.

*No catches for Bowe.

*Thomas Jones couldn’t get anything going through the middle of the O-line.He left the game with a stinger.

* When Jamaal Charles checked in, the offense moved the ball very effectively. Charles looks to be picking up right where he left off.

* Dexter McCluster looked electric running the ball.

*The defense got ran all over on the first drive. Then they stiffened up.

* Ryan Succup struggled missing 2 FG’s though they were from beyond 5o yards.

* Brodie Croyle looked very sharp.

Spooky.

This Friday the 13th, however, I am hoping the only horror show I see, is put on by the Atlanta Falcons.

For the Kansas City Chiefs, the last 3 years have been one long horror movie, with potential wins being picked off one by one, season by season, like camp counselor who made the fatal mistake of smoking a joint or having premarital sex.

Most classic horror movies end the same way. The hero survives while their friends a taken out. They are left alone, with no protection, to face the killer alone. Usually, if the movie is well written, there is a reason for this. In the original Nightmare on Elm Street for example, Nancy can’t face Freddy until she is completely backed in to a corner. Her best friend, her best friends boyfriend and her boyfriend are all killed. Her father, a cop, doesn’t believe her when she tells him someone is trying to murder her in her dreams and thus patronizes her and tells her to get some sleep. Her mother on the other hand, does believe her, and drinks herself into a drunken stupor and passes out, locking Nancy inside the house. The bars have windows on them. She is trapped and she can’t stay awake any longer.

It is time to fight.

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Source: Yardbarker.com

SI.com recently released a top 10 list entitled “NFL Tight End Matchup Nightmares.” I am sure you, like me, expect the smart folks at SI to figure out who the #1 TE in the league is. They are astute football minds. This is an easy one. No way are they going to screw it up.

But they did.

They screwed it up colossally. Their flub is so bad it is actually laughable.

Tony Gonzalez is not #1. He is not #2. He isn’t even #3. Shocked? You might want t sit down because he isn’t #4 either.

He is #5.

Here is what they had to say about the greatest TE to ever play the game of football:

A first-ballot Hall of Famer who only continues to produce and produce big. At 34, Gonzalez is coming off his seventh consecutive season of at least 70 -catches and 800 yards in receptions. The argument easily could be made he deserves to be No. 1 or No. 2 in this ranking, but he is 34 and the explosiveness and leaping ability have slipped ever so slightly.

Pardon? His skills have diminished?

Guess what picture SI has accompanying this atrocity? A shot of Tony G, in his Falcons uniform, doing his signature football dunk over the goal post. Yep. They have a picture of him jumping high next to a blurb that says he can’t jump high anymore.

They also say his skills have diminished after saying he has 7 consecutive years of 70 catches and at least 800 yards. So what they are saying is that while at 34, he hasn’t gotten any worse than when he was 26, he is losing his touch?

Sees to me he is still going out there and schooling 26 year old linebackers.

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Source: Yardbarker.com

Thanks to the fantastic Mr. Josh Looney, we now know the first Chiefs game of 2010 will be an August 13th showdown with Tony Gonzalez and the Atlanta Falcons at 7 PM (CST)!

Looney got the news from the Falcons who released their entire exhibition schedule.

This may mean it isn’t long before we find out the specifics on all of KC’s exhibition games.

Don’t worry Chiefs fans, only 127 days till Chiefs Football!

Hollywood looks. Vegan shakes. Commitment ceremonies. Flirtations with the NBA. Infatuation with the Cali way. Not exactly your typical Midwestern good ol’ boy. From the start, the California Kid stuck out like a sore thumb in Kansas City. Tony G wasn’t like Larry Johnson, disliked from the start, or Jared Allen, beloved from the start. He was somewhere in between.

Despite all that, Tony Gonzalez strung together a decade’s worth of Pro Bowls in his 12 years with the Chiefs to become one of the most popular players in team history. Make no mistake about it; he will enter our Ring of Honor and the NFL Hall of Fame as a Chief. I, for one, will still rock my No. 88 jersey at Arrowhead, and do so proudly.

I met Gonzalez on several occasions and he was always a super nice guy. Seldom will you find a professional athlete who is such a pillar both on the field and off it in the community. Tony G was exactly that for 12 years, and if you ask me he earned every cent we paid him and more. You were as likely to see him at the Plaza as you were in the endzone, and he dunked on the goalposts quite often. Tony G became an unlikely football version of George Brett to Kansas Citians. Let’s not forget that because things didn’t work out after 12 years.

Now, the big question on everybody’s lips: why move the greatest tight end in NFL history for a second-round pick, and a 2010 one at that?

Why? Because it makes sense.

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Per Jay Glazer of FOX Sports, Tony Gonzalez was traded to the Atlanta Falcons for their 2010 second-round pick. We will greatly miss our most beloved Chief. That’s all I have to say.

Did we get a good deal?  Will we use that pick to trade into the second round this year? Sound off, Addicts.

Addicts, sound off on Tony G potentially heading to Atlanta for a second-rounder…

Then I kept looking around and found one more team with those odds and it was the Oakland Raiders. I was surprised to see that both teams shared something in common, “Most Likely Top Three Draft Pick” in the 2009 NFL Draft. Even teams like the Miami Dolphins, San Francisco 49ers, Arizona Cardinals, and many more had better odds. Seriously people, the Miami Dolphins? I would prepare myself for a long and “growing” season with the Chiefs.

Here are the complete odds:

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