There are always players a little extra excited for the first day of training camp, usually rookies or guys on new teams.
But in Patriots camp, it was tight end Rob Gronkowski bouncing around, spoking football and generally looking like a much younger Gronk.
Part of that comes with health, as the 28-year-old Gronkowski has recovered from back surgery and has been given the green light by coach Bill Belichick.
“I’ve definitely had a longer vacation than a lot of guys,” Gronkowski said, via Mike Giardi of CSNNE.com. “I’d probably say I was the most eager to get going, to get rolling.