New England Patriots: 5 observations from the AFC East clincher

Robert James Gronkowski

Well, it has become clear over the past few weeks that the dominant tight end we call Gronk is no more.

That doesn’t mean he can’t be an effective tight end.  With no catches on three targets against a team he typically dominates, Rob Gronkowski is definitely a shell of himself.  There could still be something wrong health-wise, but the New England Patriots have had to find a different way to utilize the size and power of Gronkowski.

While he wasn’t even a factor in the passing game on Sunday, Rob Gronkowski the blocker was highly effective as the team ran for over 250 yards.

Overall, the big tight end is happy with the end results and cool with changing his role to help the team win.

"“Games like that happen,” Gronk said following the game.  “I’m on year nine now, and I’ve been in games where we just run the ball the whole game if it’s working.  I’ll just tell you this, whatever it takes to win a game that’s what we’re doing.”"

That is great to hear from a player who has been so dominant in the passing game in the past.  Though one of his targets ended up in an interception, Rob Gronkowski is still good enough to have a couple bigger offensive games.  While fans are getting use to the average tight end named Robert James Gronkowski, don’t be surprised if Gronk makes another appearance or two before the season is over.