Gronk Says Contract 'Not On My Mind At All' At Patriots Offseason Workouts
By Matt Dolloff, CBS Boston
BOSTON (CBS) -- The Patriots' offseason workouts may technically be voluntary, but pretty much the whole team usually shows up, even those who may have concerns about their contracts.
All-World tight end Rob Gronkowski may have said concerns about his own current deal, about which he cheekily tweeted "basically equals pay cut for the next 4 seasons" back in March, but if he does he's not showing them outwardly. He did a Q&A with USA Today's For The Win, and in-between an array of innocuous questions about everything but football he shot down a question about his contract being an issue.
"No, that's not on my mind at all. I started offseason workouts [Wednesday]," Gronk said. "It just feels great to be back with the team working out, getting back in football shape and getting prepared for the season."
No controversy, for now. If Gronk is showing up to voluntary team workouts in April, he's probably not skipping out on OTAs or actual training camp. This supports my theory that the Patriots didn't sign a bunch of tight ends because they're concerned about missing Gronk due to a contract holdout; they're signing more tight ends because they're concerned about losing Gronk to injury - and also want to return to the nigh-unstoppable two-tight-end offense.
Health should remain and always be the number one concern with Gronk, not his contract.
Matt Dolloff is a writer for CBSBostonSports.com. His opinions do not necessarily reflect that of CBS or 98.5 The Sports Hub. Have a news tip or comment for Matt? Follow him on Twitter @mattdolloff and email him at mdolloff@985thesportshub.com.
