Tampa Bay Bucs' tight end Cameron Brate knows team will 'definitely miss' retired pass catcher Rob Gronkowski

Last week, Tampa Bay Buccaneers general manager Jason Licht admitted "it would be hard to turn down" tight end Rob Gronkowski if the future Hall of Famer called about ending the second retirement of his playing career to re-join the Buccaneers to again resume catching passes thrown by quarterback and "best friend" Tom Brady.

There's currently no sign such a call is coming. Gronkowski has insisted he won't "go back to football" even if asked to return by the likes of Licht and Brady. The Buccaneers appear to have acknowledged the 33-year-old's claim by signing former Minnesota Vikings Pro Bowl tight end Kyle Rudolph and seven-time Pro Bowl wide receiver Julio Jones.

According to ESPN, Cameron Brate is now atop the Tampa Bay depth chart at Gronkowski's old position. Brate is on track to see more passes from Brady this fall after the 31-year-old recorded 30 catches for 245 yards and 4 touchdowns last season. The Bucs' TE1 recognizes there will be a physical void caused by Gronkowski's retirement. 

"Obviously, I’m not the same player as Rob — people just bounce off of Rob. When I get hit, I get hit hard — it’s not the same for me," Brate told reporters, per Myles Simmons of Pro Football Talk. "But, just being around him, trying to soak up as much as I could from his game, it was awesome, and we’ll definitely miss him this year. But I’ll try to teach some of these young guys some of the stuff I’ve picked up from him." 

Brate added he's "excited for that challenge and looking forward to" receiving more offensive snaps in Gronkowski's absence.