Poll: Will Rob Gronkowski Return In 2019?
Rob Gronkowski‘s decision on playing a 10th season is expected to come as soon as this week. On the heels of his third Super Bowl ring, Gronk exited the Patriots’ victory healthy after another injury-plagued season.
A report linked Gronkowski to having a better outlook on playing in 2019 if he was healthy at season’s end and if Tom Brady was committed to another season. Both of these came to fruition, adding intrigue to this decision. In January, Gronk was leaning toward retiring. Is he now?
The best tight end of his generation and perhaps the most dominant tight end in NFL history, Gronk has yet to turn 30. But his body has betrayed him many times over. Ankle and back injuries limited him to 13 games this season, and he missed a game because of injury in 2017. Gronkowski missed major chunks of the 2012, ’13 and ’16 slates as well. He has not played a 16-game season since 2011, and it would be unreasonable to expect 16 Gronk games again.
While Gronk and Bill Belichick were understandably giddy after the Patriots’ Super Bowl LIII conquest, the former has long been unhappy about his contract.
Agreed to in 2012, Gronk’s deal paid him well below market value for a player with his gifts. At his best, no tight end was on the same level. Yet some out-earned him. Elite wide receivers were earning millions more than Gronk, who arguably impacted games more than any skill-position player for a while. This led to frequent acrimony, two incentive packages — one of which he attained — along with 2018 retirement talk and a general disenchantment toward the Patriot Way.
Will the Patriots want Gronk back? Although he has been underpaid, his contract jumps to a career-high $11.859MM cap figure in 2019. His 2018 numbers — 52.5 receiving yards per game, three touchdowns — were well south of almost anything he posted in his previous eight seasons. Considering Gronkowski’s attitude about his deal in the past, it would be incredibly unlikely he would take a pay cut to stay with the Patriots. The Pats nearly traded him to the Lions last year, prompting a retirement threat.
With Gronk having slowed down, it is fair to wonder if the Patriots ($16.1MM in projected cap space, prior to an expected Brady extension) would want to carry his contract-year cap number on their payroll. That said, Gronkowski remains one of the league’s best tight ends. He came through with big playoff catches en route to the franchise’s latest championship. Brady’s late-career renaissance can be closely tied to Gronkowski’s incomparable presence, and although the four-time first-team All-Pro was out during the bulk of the Pats’ 2016 title run, Martellus Bennett was there to help. The Patriots do not have a comparable alternative on their current roster.
So, will the future Hall of Fame tight end call it quits? Or were these productive playoff games a springboard to at least one more season? Vote in PFR’s latest poll and weigh in with your thoughts in the comments section.
Will Rob Gronkowski return for the 2019 season?
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Yes 53% (877)
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No 47% (770)
Total votes: 1,647
Patriots Notes: Coaching Staff, Stephen Gostkowski
The Patriots have had a ton of turnover on their staff, particularly on the defensive side of the ball, the past couple of years, and that got even more pronounced today. “Defensive line coach Brendan Daly is leaving for a spot on the Kansas City Chiefs’ staff”, a source told Jim McBride of The Boston Globe (Twitter link). Daly, 43, had been with the team since the 2014 season. The team lost defensive coordinator Matt Patricia last year, who left to become head coach of the Lions.
This year, they lost defensive play-caller Brian Flores, who left to become the head coach of the Dolphins. Flores took several Patriots assistants with him to Miami, and New England’s staff will look radically different. It’s a notable occurrence for an organization known for their stability, although Bill Belichick shouldn’t have any issue building a new quality staff. The team is reportedly hiring former Buccaneers head coach and Ohio State defensive coordinator Greg Schiano to replace Flores.
- Speaking of the Patriots, the champs will have some tough decisions to make this offseason. The team has a bunch of impending free agents, and likely won’t be able to keep them all. While the Patriots have a few players who could possibly be franchise tagged, kicker Stephen Gostkowski “makes the most sense”, according to Ben Volin of The Boston Globe. Volin writes that left tackle Trent Brown is another candidate, but that it’s “more likely the Patriots would let him walk and insert Isaiah Wynn into the lineup” in his place. Wynn was New England’s first round pick in the 2018 draft, but missed his entire rookie campaign after tearing his Achilles during the preseason.
Josh Gordon, Martavis Bryant May Apply For Reinstatement By May
Suspended NFL wideouts Josh Gordon and Martavis Bryant may be able to apply for reinstatement by May, according to Tom Pelissero of NFL.com (Twitter link).
Both Gordon and Bryant are suspended — not banished — from the NFL, which, as Pelissero note,s in an important distinction given that banishment would have lead to a one-year minimum absence from the league. However, both pass-catchers’ suspensions are indefinite in nature, so there’s no clear timeframe on when they can attempt to re-enter the NFL.
Nevertheless, if both Gordon and Bryant execute their treatment plans in accordance with the league’s wishes, the NFLPA may begin to “lay groundwork” for returns in May, per Pelissero. Such a plan could could potentially put both players back on the field by training camp, something Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reported — at least, in the case of Gordon — on Wednesday.
Gordon, whom the Patriots acquired at midseason from the Browns, is scheduled to become a restricted free agent next month, so New England will soon need to decide at what level it will tender the 27-year-old. Bryant, meanwhile, was traded from the Steelers to the Raiders during the draft, but was subsequently cut and re-signed in September. He’ll be an unrestricted free agent in March, but clearly shouldn’t be expected to find a new team until later this summer, at the least.
Patriots Notes: Gordon, Chung, Underwood
Patriots wide receiver Josh Gordon could return to the field by training camp, although that’s far from a certainty, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com. Gordon was banned indefinitely from the NFL in December after violating the terms of his conditional reinstatement under the league’s substance abuse policy and is still in a rehabilitation facility. While it’s unclear when Gordon will leave rehab, it could be in the near future, at which point he plans to train in Florida. New England is supporting Gordon and paying for his treatment, so a return to the club is certainly possible. From a contractual standpoint, Gordon will be a restricted free agent this offseason.
- After suffering a broken forearm in the Super Bowl, Patriots defensive back Patrick Chung will undergo corrective surgery on Thursday, a source tells Jeff Howe of The Athletic (Twitter link). Chung will have another operation in roughly three weeks to fix a shoulder issue, per Howe. That latter surgery will likely keep Chung out of organized team activities, although he’s expected to be ready for training camp. The 31-year-old Chung appeared in 15 games for New England last year, playing on roughly 85% of the club’s defensive snaps. Pro Football Focus graded Chung — who’s under contract through 2020 — as the NFL’s No. 30 safety.
- Josh McDaniels received a new contract from the Patriots after spurning the Colts last offseason, and Albert Breer of TheMMQB.com reports McDaniels is being paid roughly $4MM per year. While coordinator and head coach salaries are often difficult to unearth, it’s hard to imagine any other coordinator in the NFL is collecting $4MM annually. After turning down the Colts in 2018, McDaniels has reportedly become even more selective regarding his head coaching prospects. This year, he only took one interview (with the Packers) and rejected a request from the Bengals.
- Former NFL wide receiver Tiquan Underwood is joining the Dolphins‘ staff as an offensive quality control coach, per Field Yates of ESPN.com (Twitter link). The ex-Rutgers speedster spent time with the Patriots in 2011 and 2012, which is where he first met new Miami coaches Brian Flores and Chad O’Shea.
NFL Reserve/Futures Contracts: 2/6/19
Here are the latest reserve/futures contract signings from around the NFL. These deals will go into effect on the first day of the 2019 league year, with players joining their respective clubs’ offseason 90-man rosters:
Los Angeles Rams
- DB Donte Deayon
- LB Travin Howard
- T Kyle Murphy
- WR Austin Proehl
New England Patriots
- OL Cole Croston
- OL Jake Eldrenkamp
- QB Danny Etling
- DL Trent Harris
- DL Frank Herron
- DB A.J. Howard
- OL Ryker Matthews
- LB Calvin Munson
- DL David Parry
- WR Damoun Patterson
- OL Dan Skipper
New Orleans Saints
- RB Martez Carter
Patriots To Hire Greg Schiano
The Patriots are set to name Greg Schiano as their new defensive coordinator, Jim McBride of the Boston Globe reports. Once hired, the former Buccaneers head coach will replace former play-caller Brian Flores, who is now the head coach of the Dolphins. 
Schiano will be Bill Belichick’s third defensive coordinator in three seasons, because the Patriots’ DC job has proven to be a major launching pad to head coaching positions. Last year, Matt Patricia parlayed his experience into the Lions’ top job. This time around, Flores moved up the ladder with a five-year fully guaranteed deal to manage one of the Pats’ divisional rivals.
Schiano has longstanding relationship with Belichick, one that has led to a pipeline between the league’s most successful franchise and the Rutgers football program. Defensive backs Devin McCourty, Jason McCourty, and Duron Harmon all played for Schiano at RU and the Pats have signed scores of other former Scarlet Knights. On a related note, one can’t help but wonder whether the Schiano hire could push the McCourty brothers to continue playing.
“I think Coach Schiano is a great defensive coach and he’s really coached all the positions — line, linebacker, DBs,” Belichick said in 2015. “He’s had a lot of extensive work with defensive backs and I think he does a great job with them. The way he runs his program, runs his defense, teaches and so forth, that’s all a great part of preparing players either in a similar way that we do it or when he was in college prepared them to come into our program with some changes but minimal maybe compared to other teams.”
Schiano’s first made a name for himself at RU, taking the program from a laughing stock to a bowl game contender. Most recently, he served as Ohio State’s defensive coordinator.
When on the banks of the old Raritan in 2006, Schiano’s Scarlet Knights ranked as high as No. 7 in the Associated Press poll.
Dolphins Hire Patriots’ Chad O’Shea
It’s a done deal. On Wednesday, the Dolphins formally hired Chad O’Shea as their new offensive coordinator, according to Field Yates of ESPN.com (on Twitter). 
O’Shea follows new head coach Brian Flores from New England to South Beach. Flores was not formally hired until after the day after the Super Bowl, but his staff is in place, for the most part. Former Colts and Lions coach Jim Caldwell is expected to serve as Flores’ assistant HC and former Packers linebackers coach Patrick Graham will be the defensive coordinator.
Flores and O’Shea have been working together since 2009. O’Shea is regarded as an up-and-coming offensive mind and he was set to become the Colts’ OC last year before Josh McDaniels bailed on Indianpolis.
Last year, McDaniels was effusive in his praise of O’Shea.
“Chad’s unbelievable,” McDaniels told Mark Daniels of the Milford Daily News. “He’s incredibly responsible for any and all of our success in the red zone. He does a lot of that work and prepares us well for that situation in the game.“
O’Shea, 46, offers 15 years of NFL head coaching experience. Prior to joining the Pats’ staff in 2009, he had stints with the Vikings and Chiefs. As a wide receivers coach, he’s tutored Wes Welker, Julian Edelman, Danny Amendola, and other NFL notables.
Patriots Lose Another Assistant To Dolphins
- Another Patriots assistant will be following Brian Flores to Miami. The Dolphins are expected to name Jerry Schuplinski as their new quarterbacks coach, according to Alex Marvez of Sirius XM Radio (on Twitter). Schuplinski served as New England’s assistant QBs coach for the past three seasons and has been a Pats staffer for six years. The Patriots gave Schuplinski his first NFL job; prior to that, he was an assistant at Division III program Case Western Reserve for six years.
No Extension Talks Between Patriots, Tom Brady
Following the Patriots‘ third Super Bowl title of the decade, they again have their legendary quarterback going into a contract year. Robert Kraft is on board with another Tom Brady extension, but no talks have commenced yet, Albert Breer of SI.com notes. Brady has never played into a contract year. While some uncertainty existed around Brady’s place with the Patriots last offseason, Breer adds the key parties are on good terms this year. The 41-year-old quarterback said before Super Bowl LIII he was not going to retire, and an extension would bring down his $27MM cap number. Brady signed team-friendly deals in 2013 and ’16 around the Combine those years.
With the quarterback market finally making big strides over the past year and change, Brady’s demands could justifiably increase. Brady’s historic contributions to the franchise notwithstanding, Bill Belichick may not be wild about a possible $30MM-AAV contract for Brady that runs into future Hall of Famer’s mid-40s, NBC Sports Boston’s Tom Curran offered during an appearance on the Rich Eisen Show (video link). Of course, with the Patriots an annual title contender and no heir apparent in place, it would seem unthinkable a Brady pact does not get done this offseason.
Patriots’ Gronk To Make Decision Soon
We’re still waiting for Rob Gronkowski‘s decision on his football future, but we won’t have to wait much longer. The tight end says he’ll make the call “in a week or two,” (via Jim Trotter of NFL.com).
When pressed about his plans, Gronk said that Sunday night was dedicated to celebrating the Super Bowl victory with his teammates. He’s been wrestling with retirement for a while now, however, and that’s partially due to his injury history. He emerged from Super Bowl LIII without suffering further injury and Tom Brady swears that he’ll be back in 2019 – both of those factors may push Gronk towards returning for the 2019 season.
In 2018, Gronkowski played through Achilles tendonitis and a bulging disc in his back. He has also been forced to suit up with a Barry Bonds-type arm brace to protect his left elbow.
Gronkowski is due a $9MM base salary next season, the last year of his current deal. It has been rumored that Gronkowski is eyeing a post-football career that includes acting and/or something fitness-related, but those opportunities should still be there for him after the ’19 campaign.
The 29-year-old (30 in May) was limited to just 47 catches for 682 yards and three touchdowns in 13 games season. The Rams did their best to keep a lid on him on Sunday, but he finished out with six catches for 87 yards, including a crucial red zone catch that led to the game’s only TD.