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When Derrick Mason spoke to reporters a couple days after the Ravens' 2009 season came to a close, he said he was leaning towards retirement.
Exactly a month later, it sounds like Mason is leaning back in the other direction.
In an interview with BaltimoreRavens.com, Mason said that he is "weighing his options to potentially come back and play".
Great, so the 13-year veteran will be in a Ravens uniform come training camp, right?
Not so fast.
Mason says that if he does choose to return to football, he will want a two-year contract.
"My thought pattern is that if there's no need to come back for one year, then there's no need to come back," Mason told the team's website. "It has to be for more than one year. I'm not just going to come back for one year and let it be at that. If I came back, it would be for more than one year."
It's unclear how that news will sit with Ravens GM Ozzie Newsome and the rest of the front office.
Mason has had a very productive five seasons in Baltimore and the Ravens are in desperate need of help at the wide receiver position. But Mason is now 36 years old, and has had some nagging injuries the last couple seasons. A two-year deal might be more than the Ravens are willing to give up.
After the Ravens' Divisional Round loss to the Colts in January, Mason said that if he plays football in 2010, he would like it to be in Baltimore. But in his latest comments, Mason acknowledges that if the Ravens are unwilling to give him a two-year deal, he might have to go elsewhere.
"There is a high possibility that I might be playing for somebody else. I understand that and I accept it," Mason said. "If the Ravens can't offer me a contract and bring me back, then there's nothing I can do about it. I did what they asked me to do for the five years I was there, and I love the organization. I can't worry about if one team doesn't want me.
"But I think there are 31 other teams out there that need a veteran that is still playing at a high level."
Those sure sound like the words of a guy who is planning on returning next season, but Mason said he isn't sure of his next move just yet.
"I want to make a decision quickly," he said. "But, it all depends if the situation is right. If I'm back in Baltimore, or anywhere else, it all depends on the situation and what teams are out there that I'm considering. If I've made the decision that I'm coming back, and there's a team that has an opportunity to make the Super Bowl, then I'll make my decision.
"I'm not going to rush the decision, but I'm not going to draw it out either."
Mason had a standard exit interview with the Ravens after the playoff loss to the Colts, and said he was on the same page with Newsome and head coach John Harbaugh at that time.
Now, if Mason decides to play next season, the two sides will have to get together and see if they can work out an agreement to keep the veteran wide receiver in Baltimore.
"At the end of the season, I felt good vibes from Ozzie and coach Harbaugh, but things change in this business," Mason said. "I might have gotten good vibes two months ago, but the vibes might be different. I don't know, but I trust that whatever decisions they make, they're making them for the best of the team. I've been through this before."
