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Two hours after practice, Gonzalez stood in front of his locker, discussing a situation that did not have closure and, if anything, felt unnatural. The most prolific tight end in NFL history said he thought he had a good relationship with Chiefs president Carl Peterson and thought Peterson was honest when he told Gonzalez he’d try to trade him.
Then a trade didn’t happen, and Gonzalez said he was the latest member of a group of longtime Chiefs who grew disenchanted with the team’s general manager.
“I’m not the first guy that’s felt like he’s been wronged around here. Ask Jared Allen. Ask a lot of guys. Ask John Tait,” Gonzalez said. “That’s what happens.”
Gonzalez stood there for 20 minutes, saying he felt betrayed and lied to and that all he was certain of in regard to his future was that he’d be in Kansas City for 11 more games. Maybe no more, but certainly not less.
Gonzalez said he’d make the best of those 11 games. But the worst part, he said, was that he didn’t think Peterson did all he could to deal Gonzalez to a contender. Then, Gonzalez said, Peterson refused to take Gonzalez’s phone calls Tuesday before and after the trade deadline passed; Peterson instead left a voicemail for Gonzalez on Wednesday morning.
“He wasn’t sorry,” Gonzalez said. “It’s a sour taste. But at the same time, it’s business. I don’t think Carl was out there going: ‘You know what? I’m going to screw Tony on this one. This is what I’m trying to do.’ I don’t know what reasons there were. Maybe I’ll sit down and talk to him about it, and maybe I won’t.
“But I’m not going to forget about it.”
Gonzalez said he met with Peterson more than two weeks ago and requested a trade. It was before the Denver game, when Gonzalez fell 3 yards short of tying Shannon Sharpe’s record for most career receiving yards for a tight end, a record Gonzalez quietly broke during the Chiefs’ 34-0 loss at Carolina on Oct. 5.
Gonzalez said Peterson told him he wouldn’t accept a fourth-round draft pick for Gonzalez, who left the meeting thinking he’d be traded if a team offered a third-rounder.
Green Bay offered a third-round pick for Gonzalez and was willing to pay Gonzalez’s salary for the remaining 3½ years of his contract. But a league source said Wednesday that the Packers’ offer included conditions the Chiefs weren’t willing to take on, such as sending future Kansas City draft picks to Green Bay if Gonzalez didn’t play out his contract or meet pre-established playing-time expectations.
Gonzalez, who was not privy to the conditions, said Wednesday that he thought the deal fell apart because Peterson insisted on receiving a second-rounder.
“I’m 32 years old,” Gonzalez said. “A second-round pick, you’re not going to get that. Everybody knows that. If they were serious about trading me, I think they would have (taken) that third-rounder.
“I don’t know whether or not they were serious. It didn’t — in the end, the way it all went down, and from what I understand, it didn’t sound like it.”
Gonzalez said Peterson promised him veto power if he didn’t want to play for an interested team. Gonzalez said he would have accepted a trade to the Packers.
To reach Kent Babb, Chiefs reporter for The Star, call 816-234-4386 or send e-mail to kbabb@kcstar.com
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