Gronkowski eager to reunite with Brady

Rob Gronkowski planted the seed for a NFL comeback when he played catch with Tom Brady two months ago. He told the sixtime Super Bowl champion quarterback he was getting an itch to play again if the “right opportunity” presented itself.

Brady, on the verge of becoming a free agent and signing a twoyear, $50 million contract with the Tampa Bay

Buccaneers, was more than intrigued.

“We had a little conversation. There was no pressure on either side,” Gronkowski recalled a day after the Bucs completed a trade to acquire the fourtime AllPro tight end from the New England Patriots.

“I told him I’m definitely interested in the decision you make,” Gronkowski added. “That’s where the conversation started … and he was fired up.”

Kicker Zane Gonzalez signed a oneyear contract to stay with the Arizona Cardinals . ... The Buffalo Bills picked up the fifthyear option on cornerback Tre’Davious White’s contract.

College sports: The NCAA is moving closer to allowing Division I athletes to earn money from endorsements and sponsorship deals they can strike on their own as early as next year.

Recommended rule changes that would clear the way for athletes to earn money from their names, images and likeness are being reviewed by college sports administrators this week before being sent to the NCAA Board of Governors, which meets next week.

NHL: If the league can resume, it is considering the idea of playing in two to four of the league’s arenas, with three games daily at each venue, commissioner Gary Bettman said in an interview with TSN in Canada.

The rinks would be in cities that are not hot spots for the coronavirus. Edmonton, Minnesota, Carolina, Dallas, Arizona, Pittsburgh, Buffalo, Columbus and Toronto have been reported as possible sites.

NASCAR: North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper said that NASCAR teams can work in their race shops if they maintain social distancing guidelines, clearing a potential hurdle to resuming the season in coming weeks.