Rob Gronkowski injury: Patriots tight end yet to be cleared by doctors, agent says

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Rosenhaus told the “Jose Rose Show” on Miami’s 560 WQAM on Thursday that Gronkowski would not make his return until given the okay by renowned orthopedic surgeon James Andrews, who is serving as an independent consultant for the star Patriot.

“Up to this point he hasn’t been cleared to play in a game,” Rosenhaus said. “He has not been cleared by Dr. Andrews, who is the supervising doctor.”

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However, many players on the Patriots are becoming frustrated with Gronkowski, according to Ed Werder of ESPN. In fact, some have begun to openly question Gronkowski to his face, causing uneasy situations within the locker room, also per Werder.

All in all, it is a weird situation for a team that is not used to controversy within the locker room.

Gronkowski initially broke his arm in Week 11 of last season, prompting a surgery that allowed him to play for New England in the playoffs. Since re-breaking the arm in playoff action, the pass catcher has undergone three additional surgeries and suffered an array of setbacks. Gronk’s back has been an issue, giving Dr. James Andrews and the Patriots medical staff further concern in giving him the green light.

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The Gronkowski camp became concerned after multiple follow-up surgeries were undertaken to combat infections that developed around the site of a device that was placed in the forearm to promote healing. Sources told WEEI.com that the bone and surrounding nerves in the area have become weakened and are a concern moving forward.

Gronkowski had three additional forearm surgeries during the offseason following the initial placement of the implement.

That game ended up a loss for the Patriots, their first of the season. Given quarterback Tom Brady’s numbers, and the numbers of his receivers, it’s a wonder that the team hasn’t lost more games, as it happens. Brady has completed just 111 of 196 passes, a completion percentage of 56.6. That’s on track for his lowest ever.

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Gronkowski is officially listed as questionable for the game and had a limited week of practice. It’s an upgrade over his doubtful status the last two weeks. Ultimately, his mysterious status should be solved on Saturday evening. The Patriots typically leave injured players at home on road trips, and are expected to update Gronkowski’s status after landing in Atlanta later in the day.

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Gronkowski addressed the weight issue with NFL.com’s Albert Breer:

As for Gronkowski’s potential return to the playing field, there is still no official word from the Patriots’ camp whether or not he will be back against the Falcons. Bill Belichick could only muster a “we’ll see” when asked about the tight end’s status, according to Christopher Price of WEEI.com. Belichick did add that Gronkowski has “definitely made progress,” which is the closest thing to an informative update as one will ever hear from longtime Pats head coach.

In three seasons with the Patriots, Gronkowski has accumulated 187 receptions for 2,663 yards and 38 touchdowns. His 17 touchdown receptions in 2011 set an NFL single-season record for touchdowns by a tight end.

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Fortunately for Gronkowski, the Thursday night game afforded him a long week leading up to Sunday’s kickoff to potentially get re-acclimated to the offense. His participation in practice has gradually been increasing in recent weeks, which should be very encouraging for Patriots fans. The setbacks appear to be over.

Gronkowski was the Patriots’ third-leading receiver in 2012 despite missing five games due to injury. He finished the regular season with 55 receptions for 790 yards and 11 touchdowns. In 2011, he set an NFL record for most receiving touchdowns by a tight end (17) on his way to 90 receptions for 1,327 yards.

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Gronkowski missed all of training camp and preseason after multiple surgeries on his forearm and back.

Fantasy impact: Gronk still has a while to get back into football shape, but avoiding the regular season PUP would be huge for his fantasy value, as that would have cost him the first six weeks of the season. As it stands, Gronk isn’t likely to play much, if any, in the first month, but he could be back sooner than what people were expecting and go back to producing like an elite TE1. Gronk is going in the fourth round in most drafts right now.

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The Patriots have five days to make a decision on whether or not Gronkowski will remain on the PUP list. If they keep him on the list, he will not count toward the 53-man roster limit, but he will have to remain on the list for the first six weeks of the season. Gronkowski is recovering from back surgery.

It seems likely that the Patriots are trying to see how far along he is, and whether or not they think he’ll be able to return prior to the team’s sixth game. If so, it seems likely the Patriots would let him ride on the active roster, as his potential impact for a game or two seems higher than, say, someone who simply plays special teams.

Still on the physically unable to perform (PUP) list that would keep him out of regular season action until at least Week 7, Gronkowski could be off the list soon to free him up for a possible return in Week 3.

While the return date may sound ambitious for a player that underwent forearm and back surgeries in May and June, respectively, the Patriots have actually been doing their best to hold Gronkowski back and allow him time to recover fully, according to Guergian.

NFL.com’s Albert Breer added that the news is little surprise, with late September regarded as the accepted timetable for return. Gronkowski reportedly still needs to add strength and, according to Breer, the Patriots may face a tough decision whether or not to put the tight end on the regular season physically unable to perform list, which would force him to sit for the first six games of the season.

Last we heard from Schefter, Gronkowski was recovering well from surgery, with the regular season PUP list looking like an unlikely fate. That report stood out in contrast to another report by the Boston Globe suggesting that Gronkowski could likely be headed for the PUP list. At the moment, the situation is murky.

During an appearance on ESPN’s NFL Insiders on Tuesday, Schefter said he hadn’t heard too many discouraging things regarding the recovery and suggested the tight end is likely to start the season on the active roster and not the PUP list. That would be a huge boost for New England as starting the year on PUP would mean Gronkowski is out for at least the first six games of the season.

Tuesday’s report from Schefter is a stark contract to recent reports out of Boston. On Sunday, Ben Volin of the Boston Globe said it was likely Gronkowski remained on the PUP list through the first six games of the regular season. He characterized the possibility of Gronkowski coming off PUP during training camp as “highly doubtful.”

As noted by Richard Hill of Pats Pulpit, the move isn’t a surprising one after offseason back surgery for Gronkowski:

Gronkowski missed five games during the 2012 season after breaking his forearm, an injury that required multiple surgeries to repair. Coupled with the microscopic lumbar discectomy surgery that Gronkowski underwent in June, it’s not surprising that he isn’t ready to go for the beginning of training camp.

There’s currently no update to Gronkowski’s recovery timetable, but today’s news is welcome as the Patriots prepare for training camp later this month.

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Currently, Gronkowski is doing rehab work with team trainers, concentrating primarily on stretching and improving core strength. He still appears to be headed for the physically unable to perform list to open training camp later this month.

The PUP list designation wouldn’t be too serious. Essentially, it would allow the Patriots to add another player in practice while Gronkowski rehabs. If Gronkowski is on the PUP list to start the season, however, he would be forced to miss New England’s first six games.

The question becomes whether or not Gronkowski will be able to play in the season opener for New England on Sept. 8. According to Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network, it’s still thought to be a possibility if no serious setbacks occur.

Since that time, Gronkowski has needed three surgeries mostly due to infection and now has had his back worked on. Many in the organization were particularly worried about the back ailment, considering it’s the part of his body that broke down in college, forcing him to slide to the second round in the draft.

Gronkowski is now having his fifth surgery since November of 2012. He’s had his forearm operated on four times, and missed significant time due to that injury. His back injury is considered less serious than the operations on his previously broken forearm, but surgery is still surgery.

Gronkowski’s agent, Drew Rosenhaus, downplayed the seriousness of the back surgery back in May, saying it’s not a big deal and is “more preventative maintenance than anything else.” There’s no word on what exactly the issue is, but the initial report suggested that surgery was considered after an MRI on a disc in his back.