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Rob Gronkowski, Patriots on course for breakup in 2019

Rob Gronkowski twisted Bill Belichick’s arm during the 2018 offseason, and stuck around with the New England Patriots. Gronk probably won’t be able to do the same thing again in 2019.

Gronkowski is due $12 million in 2019, the final year of his current contract. Considering he is 49th in receiving yards (448) with just one touchdown, the Patriots may want to part ways with their star. Meanwhile, Gronkowski may consider retirement, just like he did last offseason.

That’s a tenuous place with both sides likely mulling termination of their relationship.

The tight end has declined statistically this season amid injuries. However, at 29 years old, Gronk may also be declining physically. That’s young for a player to fall off, but the tight end isn’t like the league average. He’s suffered a number of severe injuries and has undergone more surgeries than one can count, including three procedures on his back. This year, he’s dealing with back and ankle injuries, and seems slowed by them. The idea of Gronk playing with and through pain brings back something he said in training camp when he explained his decision to return from retirement.

“I love playing the game of football. The game of football is fun when you’re feeling good,” he said in training camp in June. “If you’re not feeling good … you really don’t like the game of football. If you’re feeling good, your body feels good, your mind feels good. The joy of playing the game of football is off the charts. But at the same time, if you’re not feeling good, it can be awful. So I’m just making sure — I want to be feeling good, keep my mind clear, keep on playing the game and enjoy it.”

So, is he having fun this season?

“Just working hard. Sometimes, you’ve just got to put the work in and do what you’ve go to do,” he said at his locker in Gillette Stadium last week.

Well then.

Gronkowski could return rejuvenated for the rest of the 2018 season, as he’ll have four weeks (while missing two games and getting a bye) to recover from his pair of injures. Even if he looks like his former self, the Patriots might not want to pay him for the final year of the deal. Even if he feels like his former self, he may not feel like playing football in 2019.

That adds up to a complicated pair of decisions for New England and Gronkowski during the 2019 offseason. If the situation doesn’t change course, they’re headed for a breakup.

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