Rob Gronkowski won't be having surgery to check on the status of his infection, and ultimately install a new plate in his left forearm just yet. According to one source familiar with the proceedings, the decision for now is to have the Patriots tight end delay the surgery for several more weeks. Earlier today we thought he would continue with antibiotic treatment but we have since learned he has finished his six-week course of antibiotics.
''Gonna hold off for a few weeks to make sure infection gone before going back in,'' a source close to the situation said.
Eventually, surgeons will have to go in once again to put in a new plate that's holding the bone together. The required healing time for that surgery is roughly 10 weeks. The scenario everyone wants to avoid is having the infection linger and persist further, and show up when they go back in to change the plate. That scenario puts the start of the season in jeopardy for Gronkowski.
So for now, surgery is on hold with the hope the infection has finally cleared.
At this point, we still have 20 weeks to go until we hit September and the start of the season, so it's no time to panic. Obviously, the lingering nature of his arm injury makes him a much more risky pick in the early rounds of fantasy drafts.
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