Bruce Arians Confirms Tom Brady Pushed Rob Gronkowski to Return, Join Bucs

Tampa Bay Buccaneers head coach Bruce Arians confirmed that Tom Brady "kept pushing" for the team to acquire Rob Gronkowski's rights from the New England Patriots, according to CBS Sports' Melanie Collins.

Per Collins: "Arians ... told me the idea to bring Gronk to Tampa was Tom's. And although he wasn't sure it was going to be possible, Brady kept pushing with Gronk! Jason Licht reached out to NE to find out what it would cost to get him. The rest is history!"

The Buccaneers announced Tuesday they acquired Gronkowski and a 2020 seventh-round pick for a 2020 fourth-rounder. NFL Network's Ian Rapoport previously reported Gronkowski informed New England he wanted to suit up alongside Brady in Tampa.

Few players over Brady's career have had a better rapport with him than Gronkowski. The five-time Pro Bowl tight end caught 521 passes for 7,861 yards and 79 touchdowns in 115 games with the Patriots from 2010 to 2018.

And Brady said the following on The Howard Stern Show (h/t WEEI's Ryan Hannable) earlier this month about trust:

"I've definitely expressed my opinion to say, 'If you put him out there, I'm not going to throw him the ball.' The whole team is trusting me to do what's right by the team, so you can't put someone out there who I don't believe in. Because if I don't believe in him, it's worthless for the team.

"I think fortunately for me, Coach Belichick always saw it the same way as me, which is why I think we had such a great connection. He saw football very much the same way that I saw it. All the coaches that I worked with on a daily basis, they want the same thing."