Gonzalez stays put
As you probably have heard by now, the Kansas City Chiefs did not trade Pro Bowl tight end Tony Gonzalez to the Bills or any other team. Apparently, no one offered enough to pry the future Hall of Famer away from the Chiefs.
I'm sure a lot of you Bills fans are bemoaning an opportunity lost. Gonzalez could have drastically improved the Bills' passing game because opponents would have to game plan for him every Sunday. Robert Royal and Derek Schouman are good players, but defensive coordinators aren't staying awake at nights worrying about how to cover them.
But you can't really criticize the Bills for not making this deal. If rumors are true that the Chiefs wanted a first or second-round draft pick, that was too much to pay for a 32-year-old player who has already said he only wanted to play one or two more seasons. High draft picks are far too valuable to give up, no matter the short-term benefits Gonzalez would have provided.
Maybe, just maybe, the Bills feel they're a contender with what they have now and don't need to add someone of Gonzalez's caliber to put them over the top. We'll see about that.
I do feel bad for Gonzalez, a great player who is stuck with a young, rebuilding team that is years away from a return to respectability. If the Chiefs really cared for the guy, they would have been more flexible in negotiations and moved him to a championship contender.
---Allen Wilson
