The New England Patriots don't know when tight end Rob Gronkowski will be fully recovered from back surgery and ready to return to action, according to ESPN's Ed Werder. Gronkowski is set to undergo surgery Tuesday.
The Patriots' star tight end is having a microdiscectomy to repair a herniated disc in his spine. He had the same procedure in 2009 when he was playing college ball for Arizona, but it was on a different disc. Dr. Robert Watkins, who performed Gronkowski's previous surgery, will take care of Tuesday's procedure.
While the Patriots aren't ready to speculate when Gronk could return, the NFL staff at Rotoworld believes he may stay on the physically unable to perform list through the beginning of the regular season.
The 24-year-old, who is entering his fourth NFL season, was limited by injuries last season and played in just 11 games. Still, he managed to compile 55 catches for 790 yards and 11 touchdowns. Gronkowski had his best year in 2011, when he caught 90 passes for 1,327 yards and 17 scores.
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