Gropnk on IRt; tears ACL, MCL

[MidnightVoice]

http://espn.go.com/boston/nfl/story/_/id/10108168/rob-gronkowski-new-england-patriots-tears-acl-mcl-knee

Now if we had played better this could have been important :(

[Pinkerton Security]

Lay off the booze

[SquishDaFish]

Who the hell is Gropnk? And what is IRt??

[Scumbag College]

That was an ugly looking hit. The league is going to start looking at low hits in the future

[Generalissimus Gibby]

Good bye Gronk, oh and you didn't invent spiking the ball (gronking) *****! Break a leg mother ****er!!!!!

[BertSquirtgum]

I hope I never see Rob Gronkowski on a football field again.

[Crisis]

I really have nothing against Gronk. Hope he recovers and is back on the field again.

He's never going to stay healthy though, guy is too injury prone for the style of football he plays.

[coastal]

That was an ugly looking hit. The league is going to start looking at low hits in the future
Maybe we should just do touch football and call it a day.

[SquishDaFish]

Maybe we should just do touch football and call it a day.

Im tellin ya within 5 years QBs will either be wearing Flags or a Red Jersey and the Refs determine when a defensive player gets close its a sack (kinda like hockey with the new icing rules-Up to the officials when to blow wistle and declare icing) and if that doesnt work then its 2 hand touch for the entire league in 10 years.

[GingerP]

Too bad, especially for a guy with local ties.

[Meathead]

chuck the featers

[feldspar]

That was an ugly looking hit. The league is going to start looking at low hits in the future

Yeah, well defenders are starting to hit guys low because they are afraid to draw a flag for hitting them high. No kidding...so you take out a guy's knees now instead of risking hitting him in the helmet or while he's defenseless or whatever the hell. This is the new trend. There is truth to that.

You cannot take the violence out a violent sport as much as they'd like to create a plethora of confusing rules that are open to interpretation, allowing the refs to take over games further. It's like the boxing federation trying to stop boxers from hitting each other, when the whole point is to beat the hell out of the other guy.

It's getting pretty ridiculous. May as well not play the sport at all if you want guaranteed safety.

[Night Train]

Who's Braqdysek going to throw to ?

[GingerP]

Who's Braqdysek going to throw to ?

They still have Edelman, Amendola, Vareen, Dobson, Thompkins. Those guys have 224 catches this year so far. They have guys who can catch, and I imagine they are going to be more of a multi-WR offense from now on.

I think where this kills them is the running game and the red zone. Gronkowski was such a weapon in the passing game, it allowed them to play big personnel and either run or pass. Now they have smaller guys in the game when they throw, which could effect the run game. I think they are more of a finesse team now that spreads teams out and runs change-of-pace plays like draws. That also hurts them in the red zone where there is less space to defend and a big weapon like Gronkowski makes a big difference. He has 43 career TDs, you can't replace that scoring.

With Brady they will still be able to throw the ball, but ultimately those yards will lead to less points. Given the injuries they have had on defense, they can't afford that.

[trapezeus]

so he's going to be at the club later this week?

[Spiderweb]

What Gronk gave the Pats was a guy who they could go to any point. Big, fast, great hands, and knows how to use his body to shield the defender. He's absolutely everything one could ask for in a TE, except he seems to have become an injury waiting to happen. The loss of Gronk would hurt any team and the Pats are no exception.

[trapezeus]

i'd rather see this injury happen to brady.

[The last buffalo fan]

Injury prone? Get real people, I really hate the ****ing Pats, but Gronk's injuries could happen to any football player, injury prone or no!

[Crisis]

Injury prone? Get real people, I really hate the ****ing Pats, but Gronk's injuries could happen to any football player, injury prone or no!

Being fragile and being injury prone are different. The guy has had back problems/surgery, multiple arm surgeries, high anke sprain, and now blew his knee out. You can chalk a lot of it up to bad luck but the way certain guys play the game make them more prone to injuries. Look at how often Big Ben/Gronk are hurt compared to guys like Brady/Manning who protect themselves.

If the laundry list of injuries Gronk has had in his short career don't make him injury prone I don't think there's anyone in the world we could call injury prone.

[OpIv37]

Yeah, well defenders are starting to hit guys low because they are afraid to draw a flag for hitting them high. No kidding...so you take out a guy's knees now instead of risking hitting him in the helmet or while he's defenseless or whatever the hell. This is the new trend. There is truth to that.

You cannot take the violence out a violent sport as much as they'd like to create a plethora of confusing rules that are open to interpretation, allowing the refs to take over games further. It's like the boxing federation trying to stop boxers from hitting each other, when the whole point is to beat the hell out of the other guy.

It's getting pretty ridiculous. May as well not play the sport at all if you want guaranteed safety.

We've had our differences in the past, but I couldn't agree with you more on this one. It's a ****ing joke.

If you hit a QB in the chest and his head comes forward and the helmets collide, it's 15 yards. If you hit the QB low, it's 15 yards on the "Brady Rule."

That means that you've got anywhere from 2.5 to 3 feet where it's legal to make contact on a QB, depending on the size of the guy, and somehow they expect 250-300 lb defenders running at full NFL athlete speed to go fast enough to make the play but slow enough to make a legal hit? Please. I've already seen defenders- both our guys and our opponents- back off from hitting the QB when the QB still had the ball because they were afraid of getting flagged. It usually happens after 2-3 calls in the same game. But guys are literally afraid to play D because they don't want to take a penalty.

And the more "judgment calls" they give to the refs, the more mistakes are going to be made. And I don't believe for a second that it evens out in the long run. That's a poor substitute for getting it right.

Hell, just look at the last game- EJ got hit when he slid, which should have been a penalty, and when Woods coughed up the ball, that should have been a hit on a defenseless receiver. Now, I personally don't think either one should be a penalty, but I've also seen similar plays get called against us multiple times this year. It's inconsistent at best and blatant favoritism on the part of the league at worst.

[Mr. Miyagi]

Why didn't he just do us all a favor and die on the field?

[OpIv37]

Why didn't he just do us all a favor and die on the field?

That asshat is from Buffalo too.

I hope he gets ulcers over the fact that his success makes his hometown miserable, but he's a Patriot, so I doubt he gives a **** about anyone except himself.

[feldspar]

Wow, I don't understand all the Gronk hate. Is it tongue-in-cheek?

Sure, he's something of a buffoon, but he's a home-grown Western New York kid. He has no control over who drafted him, and having Tom Brady throwing him the ball has not hurt his career.

[BuffaloRedleg]

My brother is pretty good friends with Gronk as they used to play ball together in HS. They still stay and touch and he says he's a good dude but pretty wild obviously. His dad and my dad get together sometimes still for a beer.

I find him obnoxious as a player and of course he's a Patriot, but sheesh. Some of you are insane.

[WagonCircler]

May as well not play the sport at all if you want guaranteed safety.

I'm pretty sure that's the goal of the politically correct pussies who push things like this.

[WagonCircler]

My brother is pretty good friends with Gronk as they used to play ball together in HS. They still stay and touch and he says he's a good dude but pretty wild obviously. His dad and my dad get together sometimes still for a beer.

I find him obnoxious as a player and of course he's a Patriot, but sheesh. Some of you are insane.

I get that he plays for the Pats, but some of these posts are fked up.

The way I see it, no matter who he plays for, he's one of us.

I feel about WNY the way a lot of people feel about their nationalities. This guy, when healthy, just might me the best non-QB player in the NFL. I'm proud that he's from Buffalo.

I hope he gets better and leaves NE at some point.

[BuffaloRedleg]

I get that he plays for the Pats, but some of these posts are fked up.

The way I see it, no matter who he plays for, he's one of us.

I feel about WNY the way a lot of people feel about their nationalities. This guy, when healthy, just might me the best non-QB player in the NFL. I'm proud that he's from Buffalo.

I hope he gets better and leaves NE at some point.

***** yeah. Even Patty Kane, he'll mature eventually. These guys are young and have a ton of money/fame, what do you expect.

Side note: Listened to an hour interview with William Fichtner the other day and he name dropped Buffalo in the first 2 minutes and all throughout. Interview was excellent and he seems like a grade A badass/good dude.

[Crisis]

We've had our differences in the past, but I couldn't agree with you more on this one. It's a ****ing joke.

If you hit a QB in the chest and his head comes forward and the helmets collide, it's 15 yards. If you hit the QB low, it's 15 yards on the "Brady Rule."

That means that you've got anywhere from 2.5 to 3 feet where it's legal to make contact on a QB, depending on the size of the guy, and somehow they expect 250-300 lb defenders running at full NFL athlete speed to go fast enough to make the play but slow enough to make a legal hit? Please. I've already seen defenders- both our guys and our opponents- back off from hitting the QB when the QB still had the ball because they were afraid of getting flagged. It usually happens after 2-3 calls in the same game. But guys are literally afraid to play D because they don't want to take a penalty.

And the more "judgment calls" they give to the refs, the more mistakes are going to be made. And I don't believe for a second that it evens out in the long run. That's a poor substitute for getting it right.

Hell, just look at the last game- EJ got hit when he slid, which should have been a penalty, and when Woods coughed up the ball, that should have been a hit on a defenseless receiver. Now, I personally don't think either one should be a penalty, but I've also seen similar plays get called against us multiple times this year. It's inconsistent at best and blatant favoritism on the part of the league at worst.

EJ's rushing TD vs Atlanta is a perfect example of a defender letting up on hitting the QB because of how excessive the penalties are.

[BillsFever21]

Damn I understand he's a Patriot but still. If he was drafted by Buffalo instead of us taking the great Terrell Troup then then he would be loved by many Bills fans because of his WNY connection. His injuries would drive us crazy but it's better then Troup who didn't do anything in his career.

If the Patriots don't pay Gronk the bonus and lets him leave and he happened to sign with Buffalo most of the same people would throw a parade for him. That's just the way things go. He didn't choose to be drafted by the Patriots. He could've stayed home and close to family if Buffalo didn't make that great selection instead. What is Terrell Troup doing nowadays? Definitely not in the NFL.

[trapezeus]

I get that he plays for the Pats, but some of these posts are fked up.

The way I see it, no matter who he plays for, he's one of us.

I feel about WNY the way a lot of people feel about their nationalities. This guy, when healthy, just might me the best non-QB player in the NFL. I'm proud that he's from Buffalo.

I hope he gets better and leaves NE at some point.

i think of my self as a buffalonian first before i think of my ethnicity. but you play with the enemy, you get a lot of backlash.

obviously he has something with his arm and that hit on the leg was absolutely going to wreck anyone who got hit like that.

i am not rooting against gronk as much as it's awesome that it should hurt brady and belichick. the two guys along with ernie adams i think know they aren't playing on a level playing field.