Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez, who reportedly is being investigated to determine his connection to a homicide of a 27-year-old man near his home in North Attleboro, was sued last week after allegedly shooting an acquaintance outside a Miami strip club, according to a report from TMZ.

The lawsuit was filed in federal court in Florida last Thursday. Alexander S. Bradley claims he went to the club with Hernandez, got in an argument with the Patriot and left in the same car. During the ride to Palm Beach, the lawsuit alleges, Hernandez aimed an unlicensed gun at Bradley and it discharged, striking Bradley in the face. Bradley indicated that he needed major surgery to reconstruct his face — losing his right eye — and suffered injuries to his right hand and arm as well.

TMZ credited a source as saying Bradley’s legal team dismissed the case four days after filing it because of a paperwork error and planned to refile Wednesday.

Rob Gronkowski

Rob Gronkowski will start the preseason on the physically unable to perform list, according to Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network.

Gronkowski (who underwent his fifth surgery of the offseason and sixth of the last 17 months on Tuesday) had a procedure on his back Tuesday that was described by Dr. Robert Watkins as “microscopic lumbar discectomy surgery.” It is the second back surgery of the last four years — as a collegian, he had back surgery which left him on the shelf for a season.

Gronkowski has also had four surgeries this offseason on his forearm for a broken bone and a subsequent infection issue.

The question now is whether or not Gronkowski would start the regular season on the PUP list, which would leave him sidelined for at least the first six games of the year. Much of that can be tied to the length of the rehab process, and as Watkins stated here, “The timing of his return to football will depend on his progression through the rehabilitation program.”

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Aaron Hernandez

Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez has not been ruled out as a suspect in the North Attleboro homicide investigation, according to a report from WBZ.

The report credits a law enforcement source as saying Hernandez has not been cooperating with investigators, who were back at Hernandez’ North Attleboro home Wednesday morning but left when no one answered the door. Hernandez was spotted driving away from the home earlier.

The body of a 27-year-old man was found by a jogger Monday in an industrial park near Hernandez’ home. The man was identified by his family Wednesday as Odin Lloyd, a Dorchester resident who was a linebacker for the semi-pro Boston Bandits football team.

According to multiple reports, Hernandez was tied to the case by a rental car under his name that had been found near the scene.

Rob Gronkowski

Dr. Robert Watkins, who operated on Rob Gronkowski‘s back Tuesday in Southern California, issued a statement regarding the procedure on Tuesday evening.

“New England Patriots’ tight end Rob Gronkowski underwent a microscopic lumbar discectomy surgery performed by Dr. Robert Watkins at Marina Del Rey Hospital in Los Angeles. The surgery went well. The timing of his return to football will depend on his progression through the rehabilitation program.”

Watkins, who performed a different type of back surgery on the tight end when he was a collegian at Arizona in 2009, executed the same procedure on Giants’ defensive lineman Jason Pierre-Paul earlier this month.

For more Patriots news. check out weei.com/patriots.