Gronk gives rave early review of ‘refreshed' Tampa Brady

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How does the Tampa Bay version of Tom Brady compare to the quarterback who led the New England Patriots to six Super Bowl titles?

Outside of Brady himself, there's no better person to ask than Rob Gronkowski.

Gronk spent nine seasons as Brady's teammate in New England, then unretired this spring to reunite with TB12 on the Buccaneers. He's worked closely with Brady in training camp and seen the 43-year-old QB interact with his new teammates after 20 seasons in New England.

Gronkowski's main observation of his longtime quarterback? Brady isn't acting his age.

"From my eyes, just looking at him, he looks refreshed," Gronkowski said Thursday in a video conference with reporters. "He looks ready to go. He looks ready to play every single day, and he's motivated every day.

"It's nice to see. The way he just goes out there and works, it gets everyone better. ... It just elevates everyone's game when he's out there."

The Bucs players who are working with Brady for the first time seem to agree with Gronkowski, noting his intense focus at practices and drive to improve his teammates' play in addition to his own.

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We all know about Brady's leadership -- but can the NFL's oldest non-kicker still sling it? According to Gronk, the answer is a resounding "yes."

"His arm looks like when I first got into the league," Gronkowski said. "I think he was 32 or 33 years old (in 2010), and his arm actually may be stronger than when he was 33, which is incredible."

Gronkowski might just be pumping his QB's tires after the two connected on a deep pass at Tuesday's training camp practice. But the two former Patriots both seem rejuvenated by their change of scenery and eager to start a second chapter outside New England.

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