Rob Gronkowski was "very sad" to see Bill Belichick leave Patriots

BOSTON -- In the wake of "The Dynasty" airing on Apple TV+, a heavy amount of attention has been paid to the negative aspects of the Patriots' 20-year run of success under Bill Belichick. Included in that barrage of negativity was retired tight end Rob Gronkowski speaking freely about the conflicts and sour feelings from the 2017 season during one of the episodes.

While Gronkowski was surely speaking freely and honestly about that frustrating season during the docuseries, it would seem as though his full feelings on his former coach weren't shared on the screen. (Devin McCourty and Rodney Harrison feel that way about their interviews, anyway. Gronkowski said he hasn't seen the series yet.)

Yet in an interview on "Eye On Foxborough" podcast with MassLive's Karen Guregian and Chris Mason, Gronkowski expressed sadness that Belichick's tenure in New England came to an end after last season.

"It was very sad to see Coach Belichick go, because there wouldn't have been a dynasty, there wouldn't have been 20-plus years of a winning culture without Coach Belichick. He set the standard. Coach Belichick was the standard," Gronkowski said. "And without him, none of this was possible. There's no doubt about that. And to see him go was sad. I mean, I had a tear. Without him, like I said, I wouldn't be where I am today."

A memorable moment from Gronkowski's appearances in the series came when he shared that he received a call from the Patriots to stop celebrating so raucously after getting drafted. Despite the strict demands from the Patriots, Gronkowski said he needed that kind of discipline in order to become the type of player he became.

"I kind of needed that structure as well in my life. I wouldn't be where I am right now to this day without Coach Belichick being tough on myself and helping me get to the next level at practice or in a game," Gronkowski said on the podcast. "So I would never, ever, ever change a thing."

And while Belichick didn't land another head coaching job this offseason, Gronkowski is hoping to get in motion a plan for Fox to hire his former coach so that they could once again work together. With Tom Brady in an analyst role, Julian Edelman on an early pregame show and Gronkowski on the regular pregame show, the former tight end made the public push for Belichick to hop aboard.

"Adding Coach Belichick to the mix? I was hoping that that happens. And it still may happen. He hasn't signed with anyone. It would just be so cool if Coach Belichick joins us on the pregame show, and then we could have some fun from there," Gronkowski said. "This is the first rumbling I'm putting out there about it, so hopefully it comes true now."