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Tony Gonzalez chats with The Scores Report

Three years ago, future Hall of Fame tight end Tony Gonzalez went through two unrelated crises that would change the way he viewed his own health forever.

In early 2007, Gonzalez suffered a bout of facial paralysis known as Bell’s Palsy, which cannot be immediately diagnosed. Before doctors figured out what it was, they told him he might have suffered a stroke, a brain aneurysm, or meningitis. When it was discovered that it was Bell’s Palsy, he was told that the numbness and sagging features in his face would return to normal. For the most part, Gonzalez felt extremely lucky that it wasn’t something more serious.

Later that year, as a member of the Chiefs, Gonzalez went to have routine blood work done before the regular season. Upon leaving the hospital, he received a phone call from the team’s trainer saying that he had to return immediately for another blood test. While giving more blood, the doctor told him that unless the initial test was wrong, that his career was over.

For an hour, Gonzalez waited in agony thinking about how football may be taken away from him. Fortunately, there had been a mix up with another patient and his tests came back normal, but the two traumatic experiences left him feeling as though a change had to be made. Regardless of whether or not he was okay, he knew he had to take better care of his body.

Now, after enlisting the help of dietitian Mitzi Dulan, Gonzalez has his own line of all-natural supplements through his company, All-Pro Science. All the products are 100% all-natural, meaning no synthetics or man-made sugars have been added. There isn’t another supplement maker like APS on the market, because most companies don’t strive to go all-natural.

Tony was kind enough to recently chat with us about All-Pro Science, his new book The All-Pro Diet, as well as how eating healthy has dramatically changed his life. He was also more than willing to talk football with us, including what the 1,000-reception mark means to him (he’s just one catch shy of the honor), what he would like to be remembered for when his playing days are done and what he thinks about Falcons’ quarterback Matt Ryan’s development. He also shed some light on whether or not he’ll return to football after the 2010 season and boasts that this year’s Falcons squad is the best team he’s ever played on.

For more information on All-Pro Science and their products, click on the link to check out their home page. Tony was kind enough to give our readers 20% off on his products by entering code “88″ at the site. And for more on Gonzalez and the Falcons, visit Tony’s official Twitter Page.

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Falcons’ Gonzalez to play in 2010

The Falcons’ official website confirmed on Wednesday that Tony Gonzalez will be back in 2010, which is obviously good news for Atlanta. Gonzo caught 83 passes for 867 yards and six touchdowns in the Falcons’ run-heavy offense this season, proving that the 34-year-old can still play at an elite level.

Atlanta traded a second round pick in this year’s draft to acquire Gonzalez from Kansas City last offseason. He’s under contract for the next two seasons but I imagine that the veteran is taking things year by year now. The Falcons would love for him to finish out the remainder of his contract in Atlanta, but who knows what his decision will be after next season.

Due to injuries to Michael Turner and Matt Ryan, the Falcons’ offense wasn’t as explosive as many thought it would be entering the season. Turner also got off to a slow start, forcing offensive coordinator Mike Mularkey to rely more on the passing game instead of beating teams with a balanced approach. That was fine until Ryan started to struggle, then inconsistency became a huge problem for Atlanta. The offense also had to deal with injuries to the receiving corps, as Roddy White was hobbled all season (although he never missed a game) and promising youngster Harry Douglas suffered a knee injury in training camp and never played a snap.

Now that Gonzalez is committed to 2010 and assuming Ryan, Turner, White and Douglas can return to full health, things once again look promising for the Falcons’ offense. Now GM Thomas Dimitroff must concentrate on adding more talent to a young defensive squad so Atlanta can challenge for a playoff spot again next season.


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Falcons trade 2010 second round pick to Chiefs for Gonzalez

According to FOXSports.com, the Falcons traded their second round pick in the 2010 draft to the Chiefs in exchange for tight end Tony Gonzalez.

This deal works well for all parties involved. The Falcons wanted to give quarterback Matt Ryan a target that could attack the middle of the field in the passing game and presumably didn’t want to use their first round pick on a tight end prospect like Brandon Pettigrew with so many needs on the defensive side of the ball.

Gonzalez made it obvious after last season that he didn’t want to play for a team in rebuilding mode. While Atlanta still has a long ways to go in filling holes on the defensive side of the ball, its postseason run last year indicates that they have enough talent to win now – especially on the offensive side of the ball.

At 33 years old, Gonzo is no spring chicken but he hardly shows signs of slowing down after hauling in 96 receptions for 1,058 yards and 10 touchdowns last season. And that was with Tyler Thigpen taking most of the snaps under center. He might not be as involved in the Falcons’ offense as he was in Kansas City because Atlanta relies so much on Michael Turner and the running game, but he no doubt makes Ryan and receivers Roddy White and Michael Jenkins better around him.

The Chiefs wanted a second round pick as compensation for Gonzo and although they didn’t get it for this year’s draft, they ultimately got what they were asking for. And considering the Falcons have never had back to back winning seasons in franchise history, there’s a good chance that their second round pick will be higher next year than it is this year.

Are the Falcons interested in Tony Gonzalez?

According to the National Football Post, the Falcons are interested in trading for Chiefs’ tight end Tony Gonzalez.

Lombardi reports that the Falcons may be willing to give up their second round draft pick (#55 overall) in order to obtain the services of Gonzalez.

The move makes sense as Justin Peelle, the Falcons top tight end target from 2008, caught only 15 passes for 159 yards and 2 touchdowns in 16 games last season.

Meanwhile, Gonzalez is coming off another Pro Bowl season in which he hauled in 96 receptions for 1,058 yards and 10 touchdowns.

More on this story as it develops.

If you’re looking for a connection, Atlanta’s GM is Thomas Dimitroff, who used to be the Director of College Scouting for the Patriots under former New England general manager and now current Kansas City GM Scott Pioli.

But even with that connection, this rumor is still a little far-fetched. None of the major media outlets have had anything to say about a possible trade and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports that so far, there’s ‘nothing concrete about the rumor.’

Yes, the Falcons do want to give a pass-catching tight end to quarterback Matt Ryan. But to give up a second round pick for Gonzo is a steep price when you consider how many holes Atlanta has on the defensive side of the ball. The Falcons haven’t been major players in free agency this offseason, instead choosing to wait for the draft to fill their needs. It’s unlikely that Dimitroff would give up his second round pick when there are pressing holes at linebacker, defensive tackle, safety and defensive end. I’m not saying it wouldn’t be a good trade, it’s just seems a little unrealistic at this point.

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