The Facts: The Falcons are close to signing Bryant to a contract that would keep him from becoming an unrestricted free agent on March 10. Negotiations have been relatively smooth. "Hopefully, that will come to fruition," Falcons general manager Thomas Dimitroff said on Thursday. "We are hoping that it gets finished expeditiously."

Diehards Line: The Falcons are not overly concerned about Bryant's age. He's set to turn 40 in May. "Matt has some age in his leg, but again, Matt is one of those guys who takes care of his body," Dimitroff said. "He's fine-tuned as far as his flexibility and his hydration, because that's another part of it. I'm not concerned about it as far as what we are looking to do. I think he's still got years left in him." Bryant has been with the Falcons since 2009. He's made 148 of 167 field goals attempts (88.6 percent), including 18 of 24 from 50 yards are longer.