Just over a year ago Tony Gonzalez asked for a trade. The Chiefs were coming off a 4-12 record, and Gonzalez, then 32 and a nine-time Pro Bowler, wanted to play for a winner. Can't say I blame him, really. Nothing came of the request, Gonzalez was again the centerpiece of the offense last season, catching 96 passes for 1,058 yards and 10 touchdowns. Good news: Gonzalez was named to his 10th Pro Bowl. Bad news: Kansas City managed just two wins.
A year older and facing slim odds that things could get any worse, Gonzalez again asked for a trade. But unlike, say, Mr. Ocho Cinco, there weren't any crazed on-air demands or ultimatums, just a request to play elsewhere in 2009 if the front office could swing it.
Gonzalez even told new general manager Scott Pioli and new head coach Todd Haley that, "I'm on board. If you guys want me here, I'm going to play ball for you ... [but] ... Look, if you guys want to trade me, go ahead and do it. I'm on board with that too." Via NFL.com.
"It was incredibly, incredibly frustrating," Gonzalez told 610 Sports Radio in Kansas City. "Obviously, last year, when I did ask for a trade, that was on my mind. It's not that I didn't believe in the team and believe in the direction it was going. It was just how quickly were we going to get there? That's frustrating when you're on a team with a bunch of young guys and you're not winning.Hard to begrudge a guy for wanting to end his career with a playoff team, even though fans and media do just that every time a player threatens to hold out unless he gets more dough or is traded. The difference: Gonzalez was upfront, frank, and he didn't need his agent to Tweet us his feelings, or hold a press conference his his front yard while doing shirtless sit-ups.
"I wanted to be able to finish my career on a high note. With the Chiefs, I'm not saying we couldn't get there and they're not going to get there, it's just that I wanted to get to a team that was established, that was going the right direction, that had immediate success. Then maybe finishing it on the note that I want to, which is winning a playoff game and going to the Super Bowl. I think I have that opportunity now with the Falcons."
Apparently, that counts for something.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
5-14-2009 @ 11:20AM
soulcitysigma1914 said...
Gonzalez went about it in such a classy way that it is hard not to like and respect the guy. He didn't become uncooperative and become a no-show at mini-camps like Julius Peppers. He was willing to stay in KC if the front office was unwilling to trade him, unlike Julius Peppers. He didn't make it more difficult for the team by saying he was only going to accept a trade to one of four teams, which is what Julius Peppers did. He showed clear compassion for and general well-wishes for the organization and the fans that gave him his true start and supported him as he became what he is today, unlike Julius Peppers.
Once he retires, Gonzalez should teach a seminar on the proper way to request a trade without alienating the fanbase.
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5-14-2009 @ 12:12PM
mickscal said...
"Then maybe finishing it on the note that I want to, which is winning a playoff game and going to the Super Bowl. I think I have that opportunity now with the Falcons."
as a falcons fan, I'm not sure those words have ever been uttered in a serious manner.
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5-15-2009 @ 6:27PM
rommel said...
I've lived in Kansas City my whole life. What a class-act Tony has been during his ENTIRE career. Not once was he on the news or in the paper for something other than the NFL or charity. Good luck to Tony, too bad our defense couldnt get one stop against the Colts in the 2003 playoffs, then maybe he could've had his SuperBowl win, which is the only other thing this guy could get to top-off his hall of fame career.
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5-17-2009 @ 3:24PM
Peggy said...
I LOVE TONY GONZALEZ. When I lived in KC he was my favorite and when I moved to Oklahom he is still my favorites as well as the KC CHIEFS. Win, Lose, or Draw, I will always support the Chiefs. And Tony. No matter where he is or who he plays for. The same way with Jared Allen. With Tony & Jared they always ahve my cheers no matter where they are. These are true men, like in the 60's, they play because they love the sport and the fans. Class Acts all the way. KC Chiefs let the two best guys get a way !!!
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6-02-2009 @ 12:43PM
www4freecashcom said...
KC is a terrible franchise, but they have made some great players suffer through their horrible hierarchy. Tony Gonzalez is just the latest. I'm not a KC fan(obviously), but I think he's the best receiving tight end since Winslow Sr. Likewise, Derrick Thomas, RIP, was the greatest pure pass rusher of his time, though he was treated like trash by the coaches because they didn't know what to do with him. Though at the end of his career, in part because they let him get beat to death, Trent Green was also a guy I respect a great deal who got screwed over by their organizational and coaching ineptitudes. Most of all, they were all very good players, who would have been better off if they'd taken the first train out of town any way they could get it, but they were too classy to do it.
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6-05-2009 @ 10:01PM
trudie1055 said...
I love Tony. He's the greatest! But, he thinks he'll be going to the Super Bowl with the Falcons? Come on Tony!
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6-09-2009 @ 12:03PM
Shelia said...
I have been a Chiefs fan since 1963 through good times and bad. There have been some classy players and Tony is one of my favorite. I wish him well with the Falcons, but I hope he goes into the hall of fame as a Chief. Best of luck Tony.
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