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Gronk's Agent: Back Surgery Not A Big Deal

BOSTON (CBS) - It's never good to hear that Rob Gronkowski will require more surgery, especially after the four he underwent on his broken forearm, but his agent is downplaying the upcoming back surgery that lies ahead for the New England Patriots tight end.

"This is a lingering problem that Rob's had for a while that's he's been playing with, actually through all of last season," Gronk's agent Drew Rosenhaus told Joe Rose of WQAM in Miami -- according to Pro Football Talk.  "The recovery will be very comparable to the amount of time he'll miss with the arm surgery.  So why not get it down and make sure when he is healthy he's 100 percent and doesn't have to address the back down the road?"

Rosenhaus said this current back problem is unrelated to the back issue that caused Gronkowski to miss his entire 2009 college season at Arizona, and is something he played through last season.

"This is a new injury and it's minor, it's not as significant [as the back injury he suffered in 2009]," Rosenhaus said.  "I don't think it's a big deal, I think it's more preventive maintenance than anything else.  It's something that, although he needs it, he's had it for a while and he's been able to function."

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The NFL Network's Albert Breer reported on Wednesday that the surgery is "tentatively" scheduled for mid-June, and it will force the tight end to miss at least the start of training camp.

Gronkowski was limited to just 11 regular-season games last season, catching 55 passes for 790 yards and 11 touchdowns.

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