Gronk Thread: Gronkowski to Tampa Bay!

[Jfever]

Playing starters on special teams in order to create a bigger feeling or sense of "team" is all cool with me. I mean, what the heck, go for it... don't care. Like I said; His resume speaks volumes of his coaching abilities. But... in a blow out game... a "huge" blow out game... at the very end of the game - why does the leagues best TE have his helmet on? Is there not another TE active on that roster? Heck, I'm not sure if he was active but frickin V.Shancoe was recently picked up by the Pats right?

Oh, And you have yourself a bet. I'll bet you that 1,000 bucks. You said "I'll bet you 1,000 dollars that no significant player gets significantly injured on a meaningless extra point in a blowout ever again. As long as BB is coaching... I have "ever" on my side and we'll just have to haggle about what "significant" means. Heck, Kickers, long snappers and even holders are "significant". lol.

[TheOracle]

Playing starters on special teams in order to create a bigger feeling or sense of "team" is all cool with me. I mean, what the heck, go for it... don't care. Like I said; His resume speaks volumes of his coaching abilities. But... in a blow out game... a "huge" blow out game... at the very end of the game - why does the leagues best TE have his helmet on? Is there not another TE active on that roster? Heck, I'm not sure if he was active but frickin V.Shancoe was recently picked up by the Pats right?

Oh, And you have yourself a bet. I'll bet you that 1,000 bucks. You said "I'll bet you 1,000 dollars that no significant player gets significantly injured on a meaningless extra point in a blowout ever again. As long as BB is coaching... I have "ever" on my side and we'll just have to haggle about what "significant" means. Heck, Kickers, long snappers and even holders are "significant". lol.

lol well played.

Anyways, what I'm trying to communicate is that this just isn't a practice that's done in the NFL. Teams don't have backup field goal teams. In a perfect world, you're right, Gronk would be on the sideline, but that's just not how it works in the NFL. I know it sucks that Gronk got hurt. The thing is, people like to pile on BB for running up the score on teams, because for many people this creates this visceral, angry reaction. They think it's wrong, that he's a poor sport, that he doesn't respect "The Game", etc. So to them, this is an opportunity to pick on BB for doing stuff like that.

The issue I have with this is that you're judging the results rather than the process. Leaving Gronk out there for a meaningless XPT is a horribly unlucky fluke. Now, having Brady throwing the ball as late in the game as he was? That's totally different. I think BB deserves criticism for that, even though Brady didn't get hurt. No need to have your franchise QB dropping back to pass, a much riskier play than blocking on an XPT.

[TheOracle]

Gronk Rises.

[CokeAndBacardi]

Gronk Rises.

Ha. The caveman legend continues. We've seen some pretty badass returns from injury this year. AP, Suggs, etc.

[Jfever]

lol

[Jfever]

Just sayin. Two broken arms in one season. Two different bones / unrelated to each other. Strange. Mathews - two broken clavicles / two different bones - same season.

Are / or should Gronk owners be concerned at all at this news? I didn't research his history but has this happened before with him? Could just be a freak thing.

[IHaveAZombiePlan]

It crossed my mind after watching the Texans game the other day, but it doesn't really bother me. I have him in my 16 team league in my sig and he's such an advantage to have when he's healthy I'm willing to wait out any times when he is hurt.

Also, I thought it was the same arm, and same bone. Didn't the first injury heal up and the new break was at the edge of some plate they had put in?

edit:

Not sure we can say the injuries were unrelated.

"Gronkowski refractured his ulna in a different place than he initially injured it Nov. 18 blocking on an extra-point attempt against the Colts. The new break is higher, closer to the elbow, than the original fracture, according to a team source. The same source added that the new break occurred just above the plate surgically inserted to fix the first fracture. The bone above the plate is potentially more vulnerable for breaking." -Shira Springer article from the Boston Globe.

[MR ROURKE]

I'd be more worried about his knee breaking down. Coming out, many teams saw his great promise but were scared off by the state of his knee. Bill Pollan said that they took Gronk off their draft list due to his knee and they weren't sure how much playing time Gronk had. Doesn't look like the greatest decision right now, but just saying that there are actual NFL people who didn't want to touch him in the draft.

[Mangelo]

I don't remember him having knee problems, thought it was his back everyone was worried about.

[Lotto4Life]

Yes. Back. Ankle. Forearm. Forearm.

[MR ROURKE]

Oh yea... that's right. He was thought to have a degenerative back condition, which is why he was taken off draft boards.

[dlf_jacobf]

Gronk missed all of his 2009 college season due to back surgery. The reports on exactly what was wrong and what was done were inconsistent. Some said it was a degenerative condition where the spine narrows and puts pressure on the spinal cord. This is what made Michael Irvin retire. Other reports say that it was just a spinal fussion in his lower back. Either way, it was major enough for him to miss 9-12 months of football activity and was why a lot of teams passed on him in the draft.

When you combine that with the ankle surgery after last season and the dual forearm surgeries this year, there is definite cause for concern that his bones just aren't as strong as they should be for one reason or another. There are several genetic disorders or traits that could have the impact of making bones slightly more brittle than they should be.

He's a great talent and comes from a family of talent, but I think he falls into the same group as McFadden. Must start when healthy, but expect him to be hurt for part of the season. You better have a good backup plan just in case.

[ccj]

Not sure I'd say injury prone YET. Definitely plays with that reckless abandon that leads otherwise tough physical guys to get that label though. Remember this play: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ni8o-4ZB-Qk

[allpurple]

Gronk is a bar of soap. The more you use it the less you have left. I'd like to think he could turn the corner and throw together a decent health record but realistically thats never going to happen. I think the Pats feel the same way. They continually are looking to upgrade depth at TE. Guy is a warrior though. If he can play at any capacity. He plays and plays hard.

[lukeb]

Not injury prone. Freak ankle injury last year and broke his arm this year (reinjured it coming back too early IMO). The two aren't related IMO. I wouldn't consider him injury prone.