After tearing his ACL against the Cleveland Browns last December, it’s been a whirlwind of offseason speculation for New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski.

The talented but oft-injured star went on record that he planned on playing all 16 games in 2014, but those expectations were cooled by Patriots head coach Bill Belichick, who said that the team was still deciding what they were going to do with their end zone presence.

Today we’ve found out, as Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reported that Gronkowski’s prediction still has a chance to come true, as the tight end will start his team’s Week 1 contest against the Miami Dolphins:

Word is Rob Gronkowski (ACL) was right earlier in the week. The #Patriots TE is expected to play vs. #Dolphins. Snaps may be limited tho

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) September 5, 2014

While Gronkowski may be on a limited snap count this Sunday, the fact that he’s even going to play is obviously a huge boon to the New England offense as a whole. Quarterback Tom Brady noticeably struggled to find a rhythm with Gronkowski on the sideline last year; instead forced to throw to a still-developing group of rookie wide receivers.

When Gronkowski was in the lineup, Brady had a much easier time putting points on the board, so having the elite tight end back in the fray is arguably the biggest key to the Patriots’ success in 2014.

We’ll have to wait and see just how much damage Gronkowski can do after missing the entire preseason, but there’s no doubt he’s one of the two best tight ends in the league and should contribute immediately.