Tom Brady‘s decision to un-retire and return to the Buccaneers for the 2022 season was widely expected to be followed by an announcement that Rob Gronkowski would play for the Bucs as well. So far, that announcement hasn’t come.
Gronkowski has still not revealed whether he plans to play this season, and Brady said he doesn’t know what Gronk plans to do.
“I think it’s just obviously totally up to him and we’d all obviously love to play with him but he’s got to make the best decision for himself and he knows that,” Brady said, via Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times. “Anyone who cares about him knows that he’s 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’s got to do to figure it out and I think we’ll be hopeful if he does and if he doesn’t we still got to go out there and figure out what to do.”
Gronkowski is 33 years old and has had plenty of injuries, and it wouldn’t be surprising if he decides to walk away. He’s also a free agent and would be free to sign elsewhere if he wishes. But Gronk has indicated he only wants to play with Brady, and most people expect that he’ll ultimately return to Tampa Bay before the season starts.