Rob Gronkowski’s Brother Hints At Star’s Frustration…’Need For More Freedom’

The rumor about Rob Gronkowski’s possible trade to the Detroit Lions is the hottest topic these days. The Patriots tight end put an end to the discussion by saying that he never planned to leave Foxboro and Tom Brady. This time Gronkowski’s brother decided to give a hint on the player’s frustration.

Gronkowski’s brother, Chris, had an interview on WEEI’s Kirk & Callahan, and addressed Gronk’s frustration with the Patriots.

First, it was Gronk‘s contract. The Patriots needed too much time to restructure the deal, and Chris confirmed that Gronk felt undervalued at one point.

“He wanted to get paid what he deserved. He wanted to be paid (like) one of the top tight ends for once. It’s been a struggle for him to make that money. They want to put him on an incentive-based (contract), and he proved last year that, ‘I’ll take incentive-based,’ and he got the job done. For him, he just wanted to sit down and get paid what he deserved and made sense for him,” Chris said.

Gronk didn’t want to play anywhere else. Chris played in the league as a fullback, and made sure to help his brother realize his financial sacrifice.

“He definitely would have been getting paid at least 15 (million) a year if he had left New England. So, yeah, that crosses your mind. But at the same time, he loves where he’s playing, he loves who he’s playing with and he loves winning games. So, he would rather give that money up and play for a team he wants to play for,” Gronk’s brother said.

According to Chris, his brother didn’t enjoy the 2017 season, and thought the Patriots didn’t appreciate him.

“He really just wanted to be able to have more freedom, is kind of what it came down to. And some respect to do what he needs to get done… He just wanted some more freedom, and he wanted to get what he deserved. He was being paid like he was just a mediocre tight end, and just wanted to get some respect on that end, as well,” Chris said.

The 2018 season brought new frustrations. “I haven’t talked to Rob personally about it, but I can just tell by his emotions and his facial features that he’s super frustrated with it. You can see at the end of the (Lions) game how they ended the game double-covering him, pressing him off the line. He just wants to get the ball in his hands and make plays. You just can’t do it when nobody else is getting open. You can’t have single-coverage if no one else can beat single-coverage,” Gronk’s brother added.

Maybe Rob Gronkowski will have a different treatment this season.