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Tony Gonzalez leaning strongly toward retirement
Falcons 2
Atlanta Falcons tight end Tony Gonzalez makes a catch during football training camp in Flowery Branch, Ga., Friday. - photo by Associated Press
GEORGE HENRY
Associated Press
Updated: Jul 28, 2012, 2:24 AM
Published: Jul 28, 2012, 2:25 AM

FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. — Atlanta Falcons tight end Tony Gonzalez is close to retiring from the NFL.

How close is up in the air.

Gonzalez said Friday that he's 95 percent sure the upcoming season will be his last, but he wasn't ready to completely rule out a return in 2013.

"I've had a great run," he said. "I don't want to be one of those players toward the end of their careers — and nothing against guys that have done it like that in the past — but I want to make sure that I'm at the top of my game when I do go out."

After the Atlanta Falcons finished their second day of training camp Friday, Gonzalez said offseason discussions with family members and friends helped him understand that the end is near.

He's accomplished quite a bit in 15 seasons and last year surpassed Terrell Owens, Tim Brown, Cris Carter and Marvin Harrison to become No. 2 on the league's career receptions list with 1,149 catches.

Considering that he earned a 12th trip to the Pro Bowl last season, Gonzalez believes he could play at a high level for perhaps another three years, but at 36, he doesn't want to hang around too long.

"Sometimes you have to call it quits, and I'm just one of those type of guys that I can't handle being average at this sport because I've been at the top for a while," Gonzalez said. "I hope that's not coming off as cocky, but it's just the way I operate. I don't want to come out there and be somewhat of a role player."

The Falcons, who acquired Gonzalez in a March 2009 trade that sent a second-round draft pick to Kansas City, signed him to a one-year, $6.9 million contract extension before a Week 17 win over Tampa Bay last season.

Though Atlanta played poorly the following week in a wild-card playoff loss at the New York Giants, Gonzalez still finished the regular season with his best numbers in three years with the Falcons, catching 80 passes for 875 yards and seven touchdowns.

Gonzalez insisted that he doesn't want to publicly discuss retirement again until the end of the season.

"I don't want to be a distraction to myself, first and foremost," he said. "I don't want to play games in my head. I'm sticking to it, and we'll know at the end of the season. We have a long time before that day even comes."

Gonzalez is the first NFL tight end — and 13th player in history — with more than 13,000 yards receiving. He holds nearly every NFL record, including 95 touchdown catches, for his position.

One statistic that amazes Falcons coach Mike Smith is Gonzalez's ball security. He hasn't fumbled since Week 16 of 2006. The last time he lost a fumble was in Week 5 of 1999 — a span of 202 straight games and 1,038 receptions.

"It's phenomenal," Smith said. "It says a lot to the way he works in practice. When you watch him, he's playing it like it's a game. He's catching the ball. He's putting it away. He's finishing his catches and running through the end zone. It just speaks volumes."

A storybook ending for Gonzalez would be to win a playoff game for the first time in his career and help the Falcons earn their first Super Bowl title. But for now, he plans to soak in the atmosphere of each day.

"I'm about 95 percent sure (to retire), but I'm enjoying it," he said. "It's kind of a good thing. Because I know this is probably going to be my last camp, I get to enjoy it a little bit more and enjoy the guys a little bit more and really concentrate on just having fun this season. And that means winning games.
Ryan glad to have extension settled ahead of training camp
Ryan
Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan speaks during a news conference Monday, in Flowery Branch, Ga. Ryan recently signed a contract extension that makes him the highest paid player in the NFL. - photo by Associated Press
CHARLES ODUM
AP Sports Writer
Updated: May 8, 2018, 3:47 AM
Published: May 8, 2018, 3:49 AM

FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. — Matt Ryan pulled out his secret weapons to seal the five-year contract extension that made him the NFL's highest-paid player.

Ryan brought his infant twin boys, Marshall and John, to Atlanta Falcons owner Arthur Blank's office on Friday, when the deal was signed.

"Tough negotiators," a smiling Ryan said Monday.

The twins, born on April 8 following a complicated pregnancy for Ryan's wife, Sarah, and the new contract are reasons for Ryan to have an optimistic new focus on his future.

The extension announced on Thursday is worth at least $100 million , a league record, and could be worth as much as $150 million.

Ryan has been the figurehead of the Falcons during their most successful 10-year run in franchise history. He says he sees the contract as an incentive for the future instead of a reward for leading the team to six playoff seasons, including the Super Bowl run in 2016, when he was named NFL MVP.

"We've had some really good teams," Ryan said. "But I think the best is in front of us and that's what has me so excited about my future here and our future as an organization, that we have a lot of really good pieces in place."

Ryan said when he was drafted in 2008 it was his hope "to be the quarterback that a franchise leans on for a long time, 15, 20 years. That's kind of still where my head is at."

Before the extension, Ryan, who turns 33 on May 17, could have been a free agent after the 2018 season.

The threat of Ryan entering free agency could have been the biggest story of training camp. That was a distraction Ryan and the Falcons were eager to avoid.

Falcons general manager Thomas Dimitroff described the extension as "our primary focus this offseason."

Now Ryan can focus on football instead of finances as he prepares for the 2018 season.

"I'm happy with the timing of it," Ryan said. "I think the organization is very happy with the timing of it. Certainly when we get back to training camp it's 100 percent about football. ... I always felt confident it was going to get done in a smooth way and in a timely manner and I feel like it did."

There was little question the Falcons would keep Ryan, who has helped to reshape the perception of the franchise.

Before the Ryan era, the Falcons had only eight playoff seasons in 42 years, and none in back-to-back years. With Ryan, the Falcons have made the playoffs in six of 10 years, including the 2016 Super Bowl run.

The contract extension brings continued stability for an offense that also returns wide receivers Julio Jones and Mohamed Sanu and running backs Devonta Freeman and Tevin Coleman. Dimitroff gave the offense a boost by making wide receiver Calvin Ridley its first-round draft pick last month.

Like Jones, Ridley is from Alabama.

"I guess I'm an honorary Alabama quarterback now," Ryan said. "... I'm very excited about Calvin coming here."

Ryan's new deal topped the total compensation of the $84 million, three-year guaranteed deal that quarterback Kirk Cousins received from the Minnesota Vikings.

Someday, Ryan will be able to show his twins a photo taken by the Falcons of the day they were in the room when he signed the extension.

"It was a special day for our family," he said. "I was excited that they were there. That will always be a great memory for us but also a really cool picture for me to be able to show them when they get older. They won't remember it, but I'll tell them I was OK at one point."