National Football League

DT Zgonina wants to play 1 more season

Published Aug. 28, 2010 1:00 a.m. ET

Alex Marvez

Jeff Zgonina hopes he isn’t done playing football quite yet.

The 40-year-old defensive tackle told FOXSports.com that he hopes to return for an 18th NFL season. Zgonina is a free agent after spending the past three seasons with the Houston Texans.

“I still feel healthy,” Zgonina said Saturday. “I wake up in the morning, work out and I’m not sore. I’m not begging to sit in the hot tub or take Advil.

“I understand there’s got to be a need by an injury for me to probably get a job or some team that’s not happy with what they have might take a run at me. People know what they’re getting. There’s no mystery or future potential in this body. It is what it is.”

Zgonina, though, does believe he is coming off his best season since joining the Texans in 2007. Zgonina finished with 28 tackles and 2.5 sacks. He also appeared in all 16 games for the third straight season with two starts.

“My production for the number of plays I had was pretty good,” Zgonina said. “That’s why I want to come back this year.”

Zgonina, who serves as his own agent, says he is open to playing anywhere and has spoken to several teams. But Zgonina admits he would prefer to finish his career with the Texans. Houston has struggled on run defense in its first two preseason games, ranking 28th in the NFL with a 133-yard average.

“I’d love to come back because I live here and they have a great team,” Zgonina said. “It would just be so much easier. I know the system already.”

If signed, Zgonina would join two graybeard quarterbacks — Minnesota’s Brett Favre and Mark Brunell of the New York Jets — as the NFL’s oldest active position players. Favre turns 41 on Oct. 10; Brunell turns 40 on Sept. 17.

No matter what happens, Zgonina said 2010 will be his final NFL season.

“I’m ready to move on after this,” he said. “I just know I can’t let my body do this at 41. And who knows? There may not be football next year (because of a work stoppage).”