It’s looking like at least another week before Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski takes the field.
A league source tells PFT’s Mike Florio that Gronkowski is currently viewed as unlikely to play in Sunday’s game at Cincinnati, making for five straight weeks to start the season that Gronk is sidelined.
Of course, “unlikely to play” doesn’t mean “definitely not playing,” and the Patriots surely like the uncertainty surrounding Gronkowski’s status. The Bengals aren’t likely to find out for sure whether Gronkowski is playing until at least the time on Saturday when the Patriots’ flight leaves for Cincinnati, as that’s how long the Patriots waited last week to declare Gronkowski out.
And even if Gronkowski does go to Cincinnati, a final decision still wouldn’t be made until pregame warmups. So we’re still about 48 hours from knowing for sure if Gronk can go. But for now, it looks unlikely.