Gronk ‘good to go’ in Jersey
Pats hope tight end able to feast on Jets
FOXBORO — As you might expect, Rob Gronkowski seemed to have a productive Thanksgiving at the dinner table.
“I feasted for sure,” Gronkowski said yesterday. “I feasted a lot.”
The Patriots tight end is hoping he can start feasting on the football field again, too.
Gronkowski has missed three of the last four games with ankle and back issues, but fresh off a bye week, he’ll likely be back tomorrow when the Patriots face the Jets in New Jersey.
“Yeah, definitely ready to get back there,” Gronkowski said. “I’m good to go and excited to be back out there with the team, excited to get back out there on Sundays and play some ball.”
It’s been an underwhelming season for Gronkowski, who’s been a shell of himself — whether it was looking slow against tight coverage early in the season, or the recent injury spell. At Buffalo in Week 8, in the only game he’s played in the last month, he was unproductive against a team he routinely dominates, a sign that something wasn’t quite right.
Gronkowski’s back has been an issue throughout his career, but the tight end said he’s “not worried at all” about it. Asked what specifically the most recent injury was, he wasn’t sure.
“I don’t even know what it was,” Gronkowski said. “I just had to fix it.”
Still, Gronkowski seems refreshed after some extra time off thanks to the bye week.
At the podium yesterday, he was in a typically jovial mood. He joked with reporters when asked if he had caught passes from Tom Brady, who missed practice. He also made light when asked about the New York Daily News cover and column from earlier this week that declared his career over with a clever “Weak End At Gronkie’s” headline and graphic, a play off the popular 1989 movie “Weekend at Bernie’s.”
“Heard there was some like crazy weekend though at my house,” Gronkowski said. “It gets crazy.”
Gronkowski said that cover won’t motivate him against the Jets.
“It is what it is,” he said. “We’ve got a big game (tomorrow), that’s all that matters. I’ve got to get ready, got to get prepared and just focus on (tomorrow).”
The Patriots hope that typical mood can translate to Gronk’s typical self on the field. The tight end has scored just one touchdown this season, which was in the Week 1 victory over the Texans, and though he gave a non-answer when asked if this is the best he’s felt physically since then, Gronkowski clearly feels better.
“I feel good,” he said. “I’m ready to play. That’s all. I’m excited to be back out there . . . and just been working hard to get back out there and ready to roll.
I just feel overall ready. I’m excited to be back with the team, excited to go back out there with the guys and go to battle.”