It's becoming increasingly clear that Rob Gronkowski's knee injury could have been a whole lot worse.

ESPN's Dianna Marie Russini reported Monday that Gronkowski's MRI showed that he has a bruised right knee and no tears, as many Patriots fans feared after seeing Gronkowski leave Sunday's game against the Denver Broncos on a cart.

It's unclear when Gronkowski will be able to return, but Russini reported Gronkowski is considered week to week. NFL Media's Ian Rapoport reported earlier in the day that Gronkowski was expected to miss at most one week, and actually could have been good to go this weekend.

Of course, even if Gronkowski is ruled healthy enough to play, it might be in the team's best interest to hold him out at least for Sunday's game against the Philadelphia Eagles. The Patriots will be considered heavy favorites with or without Gronkowski, and even so, keeping the tight end healthy is of utmost importance for the Patriots to have another long postseason run.

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