Rob Gronkowski made quite a splash in the offseason leading up to the 2020 NFL campaign.
Don't count on the star tight end following suit this spring, however.
Rob Ninkovich on Monday predicted Gronkowski will not return to the Buccaneers despite winning a Super Bowl in his first season with Tampa Bay. The former New England Patriots linebacker boldly speculated Gronkowski, an impending free agent, will join the Miami Dolphins on the open market and team up with Deshaun Watson in South Beach.
Anyone who came across Ninkovich's prediction probably didn't give it much consideration. But for the sake of making Gronkowski's future NFL plans abundantly clear, NFL insider Jeff Darlington emphatically put the kibosh on Ninkovich's take Tuesday,
"Yeah, the only thing Nink is doing here is trying to create a little leverage for his old Patriots teammates," Darlington said on ESPN's "Get Up." "By the way, great job, Nink. I talked to somebody close to Gronk. He's coming back to Tampa. Write it up, put it on the bottom line, do whatever you want. C'mon, Gronkowski to Tampa. Tom Brady -- that's all we need to say."
Gronkowski after Super Bowl LV effectively suggested he plans on re-signing with the Bucs this offseason. The four-time champion made it clear he plans to play in the 2021 season and he didn't see a reason why he wouldn't return to Tampa. And even if the Bucs front office was iffy about bringing back Gronk, we imagine Brady would make sure one of his all-time favorite targets remained in his arsenal in Central Florida.
It will be interesting to see if teams at least check in with Gronkowski this offseason, though. As evidenced by his recent performance against the Kansas City Chiefs, the future Hall of Famer still is capable of making big-time plays in big-time moments.
