Gronk Takes A step Backwards

A news report indicated that Pats TE Rob Gronkowski will be undergoing a third surgery on his injured arm. This will be another setback for Gronk and the team. There is a question of whether he will be ready for the start of the season. What does the team do now?

They can wait and see if the infection clears up after the plates are removed from his arm. He will need another operation to insert the plates. His recovery period will start over again.

They still have Aaaron Hernandez and Jake Ballard who are stalwarts at TE position, but the offense is different without him in the lineup. Gronk and Hernandez have shown that they cannot stay healthy enough to play the entire season. Ballard is returning after missing the 2012 campaign because of a knee injury There is already a dark cloud looming overhead months before training camp.

I think they need to draft another TE in the early rounds. They seem to want to build their offense around the position. As good as they are, I don't think that Gronk and Hernandez are destined to have long careers in the NFL. I have seen this happen too many times to feel comfortable.