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By Thomas Westerholm
Life & Trends Reporter
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Former New England Patriots star Rob Gronkowski is an admirer of Bill Belichick, but a few days before news broke that the six-time Super Bowl champion would part ways with his longtime franchise, Gronkowski already had an eye on a potential successor.
To be clear, Gronkowski has been a little all over the place regarding Belichick. On Wednesday, the former tight end told the Up & Adams Show that he could see a path to the Patriots working things out with Belichick, "despite a little tension throughout the years, just like any organization."
Still, earlier in the week, Gronkowski offered his thoughts on FOX as to whether former Tennessee Titans coach Mike Vrabel would make sense for the Patriots, saying there was smoke in New England because of the Belichick rumors.
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"There will be fire if Coach Belichick is gone. Mr. Kraft will get on the phone with the Tennessee Titans organization and figure out a way to get Mike Vrabel to be the head coach of the New England Patriots," Gronkowski said Sunday. "He fits Mr. Kraft's mold. He's very experienced with the organization. He was a Patriots legend when he was a player. So we will see what happens."
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Gronkowski reiterated that take on Up & Adams, saying Vrabel fits the mold, but that he would only be of interest if Belichick opted to move on.
"I feel like he checks all the boxes," Gronkowski said.
Belichick and Gronkowski have long held a lot of mutual respect for each other. In 2015, Belichick said that Gronkowski's reputation as a partyer distracted from his leadership qualities.
"He's a great guy to have on the team," Belichick said at the time. "Forget about the talent and all that. Just the way he goes about his job, the way he works and trains in the weight room, his physical conditioning; his mental concentration and focus to be well and do well and improve are very, very good."
Gronkowski, meanwhile, said in December that despite the Patriots' struggles, Belichick remained one of the greatest coaches in the NFL.
"I played for him. I learned from him. He helped develop me to be the player that I was," Gronkowski said. "There's no doubt about that. And if he's not one of the greatest coaches of all time, he is the greatest coach of all time. He knows his football inside and out. I saw it firsthand every single day. There's no doubt about that."
Gronkowski and Belichick won three Super Bowls together along with Tom Brady. Gronkowski had yet to comment on Belichick moving on from the franchise as of Thursday morning.
The Patriots announced they would hold a press conference with Belichick and owner Robert Kraft on Thursday at noon.
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