The Bucs’ acquisition of tight end Rob Gronkowski from the New England Patriots last month was the cherry on top of their offseason sundae. Tampa Bay had already landed six-time Super Bowl champion Tom Brady, so reuniting him with his favorite target of all time seems like a recipe for success.
And even though Gronk retired from the game before the 2019 season, big things are still expected out of the future Hall of Fame tight end. Gil Brandt at NFL.com even had Gronk listed at No. 3 on his list of 12 players set to thrive this season after missing time in 2019.
Per Brandt:
“The NFL just wasn’t the same without the fun-loving Gronkowski last season. The impact of his roughly year-long retirement was felt particularly strongly in New England, which failed miserably in its attempts to find another tight end to help pick up the slack in 2019. No one suffered more than Tom Brady, whose difficulties last season stemmed partially from a lack of skill-position help. Reunited with Brady in Tampa, Gronk will create mismatch problems for opposing defenses with his physical presence, and he poses a serious threat both as a pass-catcher and run-blocker. Brady, meanwhile, no longer has to worry about the Patriots’ tight end issues as he resumes one of the most prolific working relationships of his career.”
Gronk had health issues his last few years in New England, but hopefully a year away from the game has given him time to heal, both mentally and physically.
Perhaps best of all for Gronk is that he won’t need to worry about being the primary pass-catcher in this offense, given that both Mike Evans and Chris Godwin are coming off 1,000-yard receiving seasons.
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