TAMPA, Fla. — While the Tampa Bay Buccaneers picked a tight end Saturday to start the fourth round of the NFL draft — and Washington’s 106-status Rob Gronkowski Cade Otton, who is undecided about playing in 2022.
“I’m still giving him that time,” Licht said Friday night ahead of the Buccaneers’ pick. “We’re still talking. I think it didn’t matter if we designed two tight ends. It wouldn’t matter. I think Rob appreciates that; the more the better for him. So that doesn’t show our hand or predict what is going to happen in the future.”
At his “Gronk Beach” party at the NFL draft in Las Vegas, Gronkowski told TMZ that he’s still undecided about his future, but that the Buccaneers are the only team he’ll play for next season.
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“It’s just the Bucs,” Gronkowski said. “I love this organization man. I love the guys there. It’s a family over there.”
Gronkowski still resides in Tampa, Fla. this offseason has been training two days a week at the Buccaneers facility to stay in shape.
Otton, who had 695 yards and five touchdowns in 39 games for the Huskies, not only helps offset the potential loss of Gronkowski, but also the loss of former first-round draft pick OJ Howard, who signed with the Buffalo Bills in free agency.