Rob Gronkowski returned to practice on a limited basis this week, but the New England Patriots tight end still appears to be in danger of missing another game.
As Mark Daniels of The Providence Journal notes, Gronkowski did not run routes with the wide receivers and other tight ends at practice Thursday. Daniels said the All-Pro merely “shuffled his feet in place as his teammates ran up the field” and is “certainly not healthy.” Gronk appeared to be putting forth more effort during blocking drills, but there must be a reason he’s not going full-speed just a few days before New England’s game against the Miami Dolphins.
While the Patriots are notorious for playing games with reporters, Gronkowski also skipped his weekly media availability.
The Pats have always been overly cautious with Gronkowski due to his long injury history. If they managed to steal a win in Arizona without him, why play him in a home game against a much worse team if he’s not fully healthy?
One thing we know for sure is that Bill Belichick is not going to update Gronk’s status anymore than he has to. A brave reporter already learned that the hard way earlier this week.
