Rob Gronkowski’s decision to retire from football left a correspondingly large – seemingly irreplaceable – hole in the Patriots’ current depth chart. Yet even before the 29-year-old officially called time on his NFL career, Bill Belichick was expected to add a tight end in the upcoming draft.
The Patriots enter the draft (which starts Thursday at 8 p.m.) tied with the Giants for most picks of any team (12). And while Belichick has made draft day trades every year during his time in New England except 2004, it’s not out of the realm of possibility that the Patriots could emerge from the weekend with 12 rookies.