PATRIOTS NOTEBOOK: ESPN reports Pats were close to dealing Gronk

According to ESPN, the Patriots were close to dealing Rob Gronkowski to the Lions in April, but the tight end threatened to retire if deal was made.

DETROIT — The storylines leading into this Lions-Patriots matchup could have been much different had a potential trade between the two clubs gone through this offseason.

According to ESPN, the Patriots were close to dealing Rob Gronkowski to the Lions in April, during the week of the 2018 NFL Draft. The trade became close to completion, and the only reason Gronk is still a Patriot is because he reportedly threatened to retire.

It got to the point, according to the report, that Gronkowski was so unhappy with nearly becoming a Lion that he wouldn’t return any phone calls from Detroit. The ESPN report says that Gronk’s threats weren’t because of his feelings for the Lions organization, whose general manager, Bob Quinn, and head coach, Matt Patricia, both came from the Patriots. Instead, Gronk doesn’t want to play for any other team or catch passes from any other quarterback than the Patriots and Tom Brady.

The Patriots finally called off the trade, likely leaving the Lions very disappointed.

The tight end, his agent and Bill Belichick all met at the end of April to try to clear the air. It was at that point both sides reconciled. This season, Gronk even had his contract restructured and has a chance to earn $13.05 million. He’s signed through 2019.

In the offseason Gronk was a major storyline. After the Super Bowl loss to Philadelphia, he admitted that he was contemplating retirement. Perhaps that led to the Patriots shopping the All-Pro around.

In the end, it looks like the Pats dodged a bullet. With Julian Edelman suspended, the offense has struggled through the first two weeks of the season. Gronk was Brady’s best target in Week 1, catching nine passes for 183 yards and one touchdown. Last weekend, against Jacksonville, Gronk struggled and finished with two catches for 15 yards.

Gordon is inactive: Josh Gordon did not make his Patriots debut on Sunday night.

The Patriots receiver was inactive after being limited all last week with a hamstring injury. With Gordon out, the Patriots will play with three receivers — Chris Hogan, Phillip Dorsett and Cordarrelle Patterson.

Acquired from the Cleveland Browns last week, Gordon was out on Ford Field nearly three hours before kickoff on Sunday. The newest Patriots receiver took the field to warm up with Jack Easterby, the Patriots character development coach. It’s not uncommon to see Easterby help players during pregame.

On Sunday, Gordon started by catching passes from Easterby. Later, he was in the group of players who warmed up with strength and conditioning coach Moses Cabrera. Before his warmup was over, Gordon took a selfie and signed autographs for some Patriots fans in attendance.

The fans had a sign that said they came from Boston to watch Flash Gordon play. They didn’t get their wish, but at least got a couple of keepsakes.

Also inactive for the Patriots were Trey Flowers (concussion), Patrick Chung (concussion), Eric Rowe (groin), Jacob Hollister (chest), Brian Schwenke and Cole Croston. However, Cyrus Jones was active for Sunday's game. The team's 2016 second-round draft pick had been on the Baltimore Ravens practice squad for the last two weeks after being cut by the Patriots at the end of training camp. He was re-signed by the Pats last week.

Debut for rookies: With defensive starters Flowers, Chung and Rowe out (none made the trip to Detroit), the Patriots had to rely on some newcomers. Although Duron Harmon easily stepped into the starting safety spot and Jason McCourty was expected to start opposite of Stephon Gilmore, this marked the NFL debuts for rookie cornerbacks J.C. Jackson and Keion Crossen – as well as defensive end Derek Rivers.

Both Jackson (undrafted) and Crossen (seventh-rounder) made the Patriots' 53-man roster out of training camp. Rivers missed all of his 2017 rookie season due to a torn ACL. The third-rounder had been a healthy scratch in the first two games this season.

Rowe's status was a surprise. He was limited all last week, but it was unknown that he suffered his groin injury against the Jaguars. Although it was thought that Rowe was benched against the Jags, it's quite possible that he didn't play due to the injury. The cornerback missed a handful of games last year with a similar injury.