Surefire Hall of Famer Tony Gonzalez has confirmed he will return to the Falcons in 2010.

“I’ll be around for sure next season,” the 13-year veteran tight end said in an interview on the Falcons' website.

Gonzalez told the AJC after the season's final game that he was undecided whether he'd continue playing.

“You don’t ever want to make a decision right after the season is over,"  Gonzalez said today. "Now that I’ve had a chance to get away from the game a little bit and talk to my family, I’m definitely going to be around for next year," said Gonzalez,  whose 999 career receptions are the most by a tight end in NFL history and seventh-best among all receivers.

"I’m excited about the direction this team is going in. We’ve got a really good football team and I really do believe this could be the best football team I’ve ever played on coming up next year,” he said.

Gonzalez finished his first season in Atlanta with 83 catches for 867 yards and six touchdowns.

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