Patriots TE Rob Gronkowski still not cleared for contact. Would be surprising to see him play this preseason. Still optimism for opener.
Gronkowski has been hugely productive when healthy, but his health is still a concern heading into the 2014 season. He reportedly had surgery on Jan. 9 to reconstruct a torn ACL. It typically takes a full year to recover, though Adrian Peterson and Robert Griffin III have made quicker returns (with varying success). He will be eight months into his recovery when Week 1 rolls around. Given the news that he avoided preseason PUP, Gronkowski is tentatively expected to be ready for the start of the season, and his return would be a big boost to Tom Brady and the entire New England offense. Another report pegged Gronk's chances of playing Week 1 at 50/50. When we add in replacement level value from a backup TE, Gronkowski holds 2nd round value in fantasy drafts.