Buccaneers hoped Rob Gronkowski could play vs. Patriots despite ‘multiple’ broken ribs

What kind of injury would force Rob Gronkowski to sit out Tom Brady’s return to Foxborough for a game against the Patriots?

Apparently, “multiple” broken ribs will do the job. Per FOX Sports’s Jay Glazer, Gronkowski said he suffered broken ribs and a punctured lung — a much more severe injury than initially reported.

Per ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Gronkowski could miss several weeks. Schefter wrote that a Buccaneers team source told him the team “held out hope” that Gronkowski would be able to play, calling the 32-year-old “a different breed.”

“He made progress but not enough,” Buccaneers coach Bruce Arians told ESPN’s Jenna Laine on Saturday.

Gronkowski retired briefly after his time with the Patriots, and Brady has hinted on multiple occasions that Gronkowski rekindled his love for football playing for the Buccaneers after a trying end to his time with the Patriots.

Gronkowski talked about his relationship with the Patriots — and specifically Bill Belichick — in May.

“It’s always been a great relationship actually, and I’m super blessed just to have the nine years that I had there, big time,” Gronkowski said. “I learned so much throughout my time there. But I would say the relationship’s fine. I mean, I really haven’t talked to (Belichick) at all since I’ve been traded to the Tampa Bay Bucs, but if I see him, you know, in the streets, if I see him out at an event, a football event, wherever it is, a charity event, I have absolutely no problem with him.”

The Patriots and Buccaneers kick off at 8:20 p.m. on NBC.