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New England Patriots 2019 training camp primer: Tight ends

By Patrick Morgan

FOXBORO, MA - JANUARY 10: Benjamin Watson #84 of the New England Patriots reacts after he thought he was interfered with on a play against the Baltimore Ravens during the 2010 AFC wild-card playoff game at Gillette Stadium on January 10, 2010 in Foxboro, Massachusetts. The Ravens won 33-14. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)
FOXBORO, MA - JANUARY 10: Benjamin Watson #84 of the New England Patriots reacts after he thought he was interfered with on a play against the Baltimore Ravens during the 2010 AFC wild-card playoff game at Gillette Stadium on January 10, 2010 in Foxboro, Massachusetts. The Ravens won 33-14. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images) /
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BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS – APRIL 09: Former New England Patriots player Rob Gronkowski raises the Lombardi Trophy over his head before the Red Sox home opening game against the Toronto Blue Jays at Fenway Park on April 09, 2019 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS – APRIL 09: Former New England Patriots player Rob Gronkowski raises the Lombardi Trophy over his head before the Red Sox home opening game against the Toronto Blue Jays at Fenway Park on April 09, 2019 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images) /

Here’s what we know…

Gronkowski is retired and he’s not looking back. Those checking the Internet religiously every morning hoping for breaking news of a Gronk comeback are living in a fantasy world. It’s time to move on and move forward.

Speaking of decades, that’s the exact amount of time it’s been since Benjamin Watson last suited up in a Patriots uniform. The 38-year-old veteran had pit stops in Cleveland, Baltimore, and New Orleans before coming back to (presumably) finish out his career in Foxborough with the team that originally drafted him way back in 2004.

Let that soak in for a second: the last time Watson caught a pass from Tom Brady he was a rookie, and the Patriots were cementing their dynasty status with a third Super Bowl win in four years.

The good news is that Watson and Brady should share more than just their designations as the elder statesmen in the New England locker room; they also have six years of chemistry and history playing together in the books already. Hopefully that shines through in 2019.

The bad news is that Watson got himself suspended for the first four games of the regular season because of an old failed drug test before he briefly retired. As Brady and Julian Edelman can attest, missing the opening quarter of the NFL season doesn’t necessarily equate to disaster (the Pats won Super Bowls in both the years these two were suspended), but it still wasn’t an easy pill to swallow given the overall shortage of talent at tight end in New England.

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