Tony Gonzalez said goodbye to Kansas City on Tuesday, but the legendary tight end said he’s merely on loan to the Atlanta Falcons.
The 10-time Pro Bowler met with reporters Tuesday morning in the revolving restaurant at the top of the Hyatt Regency Crown Center, saying that he might be going to Atlanta now after last week’s trade, but Gonzalez insisted that he’ll someday retire as a Chief.
Gonzalez was traded to the Falcons last Thursday for a second-round pick in the 2010 NFL draft. It ended the 33-year-old’s 12-year affiliation with Kansas City, which traded up to draft him as a 21-year-old in 1997. He has since broken every major tight end receiving record, and former Chiefs president Carl Peterson on Tuesday said Gonzalez was undoubtedly the best to ever play his position.
Gonzalez said he planned to play two or three years in Atlanta as he continues to search for playoff success. He said the pursuit of a Super Bowl championship is “everything” to him now, but he said that at the end of his career, he planned to re-sign with the Chiefs for as little as one day, just so he can retire with the team that drafted him.
Gonzalez also said there was no doubt he’d enter the Pro Football Hall of Fame as a Chiefs player, regardless of what happens with the Falcons.