Via Boston Herald:
Per a source with knowledge of the situation, the all-world tight end has imagined this scenario of reuniting with Brady for quite awhile.
This wasn’t a spur of the moment decision to request a trade. If Brady ever left, Gronkowski was going to join him wherever he landed.
That was always the plan, according to the source.
But coming out of retirement was predicated on one condition: The Patriots, who still had his rights, had to trade those rights to Tampa Bay. Somewhat shockingly, that came to pass Tuesday.
As the story goes, Gronk wanted in on Brady’s new team, and the only person standing in the way of that happening was Bill Belichick.
Gronkowski basically had Belichick over a barrel. If Belichick traded him someplace else, Gronkowski made it known he would stay retired. Returning to the Patriots also wasn’t an option.
Belichick could have stonewalled him and told Gronk to stay retired, but instead opted to get something in return.
Belichick may be a dick, but he’s all about putting his team in position to win.
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