Patriots Gridiron News 10/21: Rob Gronkowski is Back to Full Strength
New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski has been lifted from the injury list and is now full go on the field.
All-Pro tight end Rob Gronkowski is back to full strength and it is showing on the field. It has also shown on the injury report. For the first time this year, the New England Patriots tight end is not listed on the report.
So how does Gronkowski fill about being back to 100 percent?
"“I really don’t even pay attention really to the injury report,” Gronkowski said in his conference with the media on Thursday. “That’s for the team to put out there, but every single week I just try to go out and do the most I can every week. I’ve been doing everything now, so that’s why I’m off it.”"
In the past two games, Rob Gronkowski has been back to his dominant self. He has racked up over 250 in reception yards and has even gotten a bit of his swagger back. He attributes hard work as the key ingredient to his journey back to full health.
"“You just build it up over the weeks, over the days,” he added. “It’s been now a week or two or so since I’ve just been going full, so I can’t really recall the day. I’ve just been building it up over the weeks. It went good. It was a very smooth process.”"
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Now that he is back to full strength, Gronkowski will be a focal point for opposing defenses. This week versus the Pittsburgh Steelers, he expects a tough matchup even without Dick LeBeau as the defensive coordinator.
"“They’ve got a lot of the same core guys, and they’re always big, always physical,” Gronkowski said. “You’re always going in for a tough matchup when you go versus the Steelers defense, no matter what. Over the past few years, I feel like it’s kind of the same, a little difference here and there, but the majority overall, I would say is about the same.”"
Gronkowski had a breakout game against LeBeau and the Steelers back in 2010. He is hoping for a similar performance on Sunday when the two teams collide again.
Jimmy Garoppolo: Patriots backup quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo is back to full strength and has been removed from the injury report on Wednesday. The third-year quarterback suffered a shoulder injury against the Miami Dolphins in Week 2.
Garoppolo led the Patriots to a 2-0 record while Tom Brady was serving his four-game suspension. His hot start as the starting quarterback had many fans feeling good about him becoming the eventual successor to Brady.
Tom Brady for MVP: According to Bovada, Tom Brady is the odds-on favorite to win the MVP award this year. Brady has only played in two games, but his torrid pace in his first two games has landed him as the favorite. Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan and Dallas Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliot are also amongst the favorites to win the award.
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