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The debating about Tony Gonzalez can finally be put to rest.  The Kansas City Chiefs Pro Bowl tight end has been dealt to the Atlanta Falcons.  After much speculation about Gonzalez’s future and his wishes to be traded, the deal was struck sending the future Hall of Famer to the Falcons for a second-round draft pick in the 2010 NFL Draft.  The 10-time Pro Bowler becomes yet another weapon added to the arsenal of young quarterback Matt Ryan.

“On behalf of my family and the Chiefs, I want to thank Tony for his time in Kansas City,” Chiefs chairman Clark Hunt said in a statement released by the team. “Over the last 12 seasons, Tony has been one of the finest players in Chiefs history, and he will always be remembered as a member of the Chiefs. His play on the field speaks for itself -– he holds almost every major NFL record for tight ends, and he is arguably the best to ever play his position. We wish him the best in Atlanta.”

Gonzalez is known for being one of the best tight ends the game has ever seen.  He currently owns NFL records for most receptions by a tight end with 916, most receiving yards by a tight end with 10,940, 76 receiving touchdowns and 26 100-yard receiving games.  He will make an outstanding addition to an up and comming Falcons team who made the playoffs with an 11-5 record after going 4-12 the year before.

The Detroit Lions are finalizing contract negotions with their number one overall pick in this years NFL Draft.  The Lions are dealing with Tom Condon and Ben Dogra,  who represent Matthew Stafford and Jason Smith, and have not said who that person would be.  Many sources are saying it would be Stafford.  Smith would be their choice is contract negotiations fell through with the Staffor camp.  Sources say negotiations could be finalized as soon as Wednesday night.

If the Lions take Matthew Stafford, he will most likely be second to veteran QB Dante Culpepper as he has shined quite a bit this offseason.  Stafford would probably be giving a chance to compete for the starting gig, a job that most experts agree he is ready for.

Once the pick is all wrapped up with their giagantic contract, the focus will turn to the holders of the second pick, the St. Louis Rams.  The Rams are expected to take an offensive tackle, Jason Smith or Eugene Monroe, with the pick.  The Rams have moved Alex Barron from right to left tackle and have liked what they’ve seen.  This move allows the Rams to look at possibly taking Aaron Curry, linebacker, or taking the second best available quarterback Mark Sanchez.  Unlike the Lions, the Rams will most likely not sign their pick pre-draft and will not make it available until the Commissioner walks across that stage to the podium.

The Jacksonville Jaguars took a major step in filling holes Monday with the signing of veteran wideout Torry Holt.  Holt and the team agreed to a three-year deal worth $20 million, $4 million guaranteed.  The Jaguars were in dire need of receivers after the releasing of Matt Jones and Jerry Porter.

Holt was released from the St. Louis Rams, where he’s played his whole career, in March to clear cap space for younger talent.  Releasing Holt cleared up $8 million in cap space for the Rams.  The question wasn’t would Holt find another home, it was with who and what was his price tag.  After a short stint of shopping it came down to Jacksonville and Tennessee.  There were rumors that Orlando Pace, also recently released by the Rams and picked up by the Bears, wanted Holt to join him in Chicago.  In the end, both the Jaguars and Holt felt it was the right fit.

Jacksonville holds the 8th overall pick in this weekend’s NFL Draft.  It’s been speculated that they would surely go wide receiver with that selection but with the aquisition of Holt it seems they have more options.  Drafting a young receiver would allow him to study under a veteran of high calibur to train for the number one spot.  Or they could go with quarterback to give them to option to release or not renew current signal caller David Garrard’s contract in the next year or two.  Anything can happen in the NFL Draft, tune in this weekend to see it live!

Jason Peters will finally get what he wanted.  The Buffalo Bills have agreed to deal the left tackle to the Philadelphia Eagles in exchange for their first-round pick, 28th overall of next week’s draft.  The deal was agreed upon in principle but details havent been released.  The person who spoke about the deal, remains anonamous as the transaction hasn’t been officially announced.

The two time Pro Bowler has been seeking a new contract and looked to make over $10 million a year.  When contract negotiations failed it was expected that he would be traded.  The Eagles were a prime candidate as they were in the market for a left tackle.  It was speculated that the Eagles would try to trade up in the draft for one of the top tackles in the draft.  Making this move, they have one less position to fill and may look to take one of talented wide receievers, if any are left, with one of their remaining picks.

This is just one of the huge trades expected to go down in the weeks leading up to the draft.  Others still remain to be seen including Anquan Boldin, Chad Johnson and Julius Peppers.  As the draft gets closer, many trades will happen if it is in the cards for them to happen.

Maurice Jones-Drew, sensation running back for the Jacksonville Jaguars, has agreed to a contract extension for four years.  The new contract is worth close to $33 million.  Jones-Drew is the featured back in Jacksonville, following the released of veteran Fred Taylor and he wanted a new contract to reflect that.

Jones-Drew has shined during his three year career so far, finishing the 2008 season with 12 rushing touchdowns with 824 yards over 197 carries.  In just 47 games during his career he has scored 34 touchdowns, making him one of the most dangerous Jaguar.

James Harrison, outside linebacker for the defending Super Bowl champions the Pittsburgh Steelers, signed a new six year deal to remain in yellow and black.  The deal, reportedly worth $51.7 million with $20 million guaranteed, will cancel his current contract which had one year left and will begin with this season.

Harrison was a huge factor for the Steelers season, totalling 101 tackles and a franchise record 16 sacks.  He also made a Super Bowl record, longest play, when he intercepted a Kurt Warner pass and returned it 100 yards for a touchdown.  This was a no-brainer for the Steelers and they look to remain competitive to defend their title this season with retaining all their big contributors.

The 2009 NFL regular season schedule will be released differently this year than past years.  The schedule will be announced in prime time on the NFL Network and simultaneously released on NFL.com.  During the announcement on the NFL Network, the schedule will be broken down and analyzed by team.

Be sure to check in at 7pm ET for the release of the 2009 NFL regular season schedule to see who, where and when your favorite team will be playing this season!

The Cutler controversy has finally come to an end Wednesday with the announcement that Jay Cutler has been traded to the Chicago Bears.  The trade was made public at 2pm pacific time Wedesnday, putting to bed rumors that the New York Jets or Washington Redskins would land the Pro Bowl quarterback.

The deal was initially undisclosed but soon became available.  The Broncos sent Cutler and their fifth-round draft pick in this year’s draft, with the Bears sending Kyle Orton as well as their first-round pick (18th overall) and third-round in this year’s draft as well as their first-round pick in the 2010 Draft.  This move was extremely unexpected, as most assumed that Cutler would end up in Tampa Bay, New York or Detroit.  What wasn’t unexpected was the fact Denver would probably want a quarterback in return that would be ready to start.

There should be more info to come but it goes without saying the Bears have made a serious upgrade.  They haven’t had a franchise quarterback since Jim McMahon from the 1980’s.   Things could be turning around in Chicago.

A Jay Cutler-less Denver came to a realization last night when the Broncos announced efforts to reach out to the young star quarterback had failed.  The team is going to honor his wishes and seek to deal the signal caller to another team.  What team and how soon it will go down are still unknowns but but isn’t a mystery is the demand for the 25-year-old Pro Bowler.

Many teams have shown interest in Cutler, including the Jets and Buccaneers.  Other teams with quarterback needs could also include the Bears, Chiefs (if Cassel makes his way to Denver), the Lions could definitely use him and possibly the Browns.  All of these franchises could make convincing offers for Cutler, which is looking to be a first round pick in this year’s draft.  The Lions are set with two first round picks and could go with an OT with the top pick if they are able to pick up Cutler.

The rest could all make great offers but it remains to be seen who will have the means to strike the deal with Denver.  Assuming the price is a draft pick, the deal should go down very quickly.