Maybe the Patriots already know Rob Gronkowski’s plans for next season, and just haven’t shared the news. Or maybe, they’re just like everyone else — waiting for the white smoke to billow out of the lighthouse at Gillette Stadium, signaling his decision.
With the NFL legal tampering period underway and the doors to free agency opening wide tomorrow, the Patriots don’t have the luxury of tabling their discussions until Gronk — who has been working out at the TB12 facility in Foxboro when he’s been in town this winter — reaches that epiphany.
They still have to move ahead with a tight end plan.