Tom Brady’s brief retirement and subsequent return was one of the NFL’s biggest storylines this offseason, but the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are still waiting to see if another future Hall of Famer will be coming back for the 2022 season.
Rob Gronkowski, arguably the best tight end in NFL history, was a longtime teammate of Brady’s with the New England Patriots, and came out of his own brief retirement to join the GOAT when he signed with the Bucs back in 2020.
After two more seasons catching passes from Brady in Tampa Bay, Gronkowski is an unrestricted free agent who is still contemplating either a return to the Bucs, or retirement for good.
What does his quarterback think?
“I think it’s just, obviously, totally up to him,” Brady told the media recently. “We’d all love to play with him, but he’s got to make the best decision for himself, and he knows that. Anybody that cares about him knows that he is doing what’s right for him, which is trying to figure it out. We don’t have training camp for about six weeks, so whatever he has to do to figure it out. I think we will be hopeful if he does. And if he doesn’t, we’ve still got to go out there and figure out what to do.”
Brady and Gronk have continued their dominance over the past two seasons in Tampa Bay, showing off the same rare connection they displayed over their nine seasons together in New England. There’s plenty of optimism that Gronkowski will eventually make his return for one last ride with Brady, but until he makes it official, the waiting game continues.
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