New Tampa Bay Buccaneers tight end Rob Gronkowski is quite excited to play for an offensive-minded head coach in Bruce Arians.
Gronkowski said he has heard great things about Arians from players around the league, adding he hopes to be able to utilize the seams as often as he did as a member of the New England Patriots (via Josh Alper of Pro Football Talk):
Gronkowski said that he doesn’t know Bruce Arians, but has heard great things about him from players who have played for him and called the Buccaneers head coach a “football master.” He used the same term to describe Belichick and said he loves being around players like that.
Arians hasn’t made heavy use of tight ends over the course of his career, but Gronkowski said he’s sure that there will be some plays added to the playbook if he shows he can still run up the seam as well as he did in New England.
The Buccaneers capitalized on Gronkowski's desire to reunite with Tom Brady, trading a fourth-round pick to the Pats in order to acquire the four-time All-Pro.
While Arians might not have schemed for his tight ends in the past, it may not matter as much in this case. Brady and Gronkowski have one of the best rapports in football, and “Gronk” might also be naturally sprung in open space given he will be playing alongside Pro Bowl wideouts in Chris Godwin and Mike Evans.
One thing is for sure: Arians is unlikely to waver from his “air raid” tendencies, especially with Gronkowski joining the fray.