The Facts: Gates is arguably the greatest tight end in NFL history. That doesn’t mean he gets to script the end of his football career. And with each passing week, chances of him re-signing with the Chargers appear increasingly slim. GM Tom Telesco said Monday that the team has not been in recent contact with Gates, an unrestricted free agent who is less than two months away from his 38th birthday. “I understand it’s a big topic,” Telesco said. “I just don’t have an update on it right now.”

Diehards Line: The Chargers met with Gates’ representatives at the NFL scouting combine in early March, but those talks apparently haven’t progressed, despite Gates’ professed desire to extend his playing career. The 15-year veteran holds the all-time record for NFL tight ends with 114 regular-season touchdown catches, three of which he added last year. After catching four passes for 46 yards on New Year’s Eve, he told reporters: “I still got the juice.” The question is, what will that remaining "juice" cost? Gates earned $5 million last season, and hasn’t netted less than $4.5 million in any given year since 2009. Meanwhile, Hunter Henry — one of the NFL’s best young tight ends — is set to earn just over $1 million in base salary in his third season with the Chargers. The franchise also signed veteran Virgil Green, a blocking tight end who has caught for 601 yards in the last three years, in March. We'll continue to watch for more.