Rob Gronkowski said he’d have his decision in a few weeks. He’d know if he was going to come back for more football, or if he’d hang it up. That was in the glowing aftermath of winning the Super Bowl against the L.A. Rams, after making one of the biggest plays down the stretch and contributing to the Patriots’ sixth championship.

It ultimately took 48 days before he let the world in on his decision to retire on Instagram Sunday night. So the timing was off a little.

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After stops on “The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon”, a tropical vacation with girlfriend Camille Kostek and The Deckers, taking up hot yoga, Gronk has called it quits. The man who loves to have fun is in a good place in his life, according to someone close to him. He can do without all the pounding that football brings. Good for him.

But now the Patriots are left without their 29-year-old superstar. They have to make up for not having the greatest tight end of this generation in their offense. They have to replace a legend.

How do you do that?

There is no replacing Gronk. You don’t just pluck generational talents out of the air. As Tom Brady wrote about his all-world tight end on Instagram, “Our team was almost unbeatable when you were on the field!” And with free agency pretty much dried up, help probably isn’t going to come from that outlet.

The Patriots tight end room as presently constituted certainly won’t scare anyone like it once did, when No. 87 lined up.

With Jacob Hollister, Stephen Anderson, Ryan Izzo, and Matt LaCosse, their one free agent grab, there will no longer be any defensive coordinators staying up late at night game-planning for how to stop the Patriots offense, or trying to decide who to put on their resident matchup nightmare.

Gronkowski made the group special year after year. Safeties and linebackers couldn’t cover him when he was healthy. He may have had an off year by his standards, but when the time came to deliver, when Brady needed him down the stretch during the playoffs, Gronk was there, making plays. He made a huge one down the sideline on third down with the Pats trailing against the Chiefs with less than a minute to play in the AFC Championship Game. Then in the Super Bowl, he made a diving 29-yard catch to set up the game’s only touchdown. It was the play of the game. That kind of clutch ability is also what made the big lug so special.

It’s also what Brady is going to miss most about Gronkowski.

Couple with that the fact the Patriots receivers group is also rather thin after Julian Edelman, that’s going to make it tougher to throw the football in 2019.

The Patriots did win primarily on defense and a running game last season, and perhaps that’s the way they’ll do it again. The Patriots also have a great cast of runners who catch the football, so that’s important to note, as well.

With Gronkowski wavering, and given he only had a year left on his deal, the braintrust had to be figuring they would need to dip into this upcoming draft for a successor. Fortunately, this draft is pretty rich in tight end talent with a couple of Iowa kids, T.J. Hockenson and Noah Fant at the top, and Alabama’s Irv Smith after them. Bill Belichick was at the Crimson Tide’s Pro Day last week checking out Smith, along with several other Alabama players.

The Pats would likely have to move up from their spot at No. 32 to land Hockenson, who is more of a complete tight end, and perhaps Fant, an athletic stud who’s more of a pass-catcher. Smith could come in and play right away. Texas A & M’s Jace Sternberger is another possibility.

Free agent-wise, Austin Sefarian-Jenkins is still available. They haven’t reached out to him as yet, but maybe they’ll pursue him.

With Gronk now retired, it’s hard to imagine them staying with the group they have.