Patriots show Gronk re$pect

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — For the second straight year, the Patriots have tried to show Rob Gronkowski how much he’s valued.

The All-Pro tight end says he’s feeling the love and is looking forward to showing them his appreciation on the field.

Last week the Patriots added $4.3 million in incentives to Gronkowski’s contract over the next two seasons. The deal includes $1 million in per game bonuses and $3.3 million in incentives for catches, playing time and touchdowns.

It is the second consecutive season the team has added sweeteners to the 29year-old’s contract. Last season the incentives New England gave him pushed his compensation to more than $10 million.

With this latest restructured deal he has the potential to make $12.3 million this season and $13.3 million next year. It could again place him among the league’s highestpaid tight ends as he prepares to open his ninth NFL season Sunday against Houston.

“It’s definitely a relief to have that all out of the way,” Gronkowski said Tuesday. “That was last week. That’s in the past, which is good. I’m just gonna put my main focus on the Texans.”

This new pact comes after Gronk made a silent statement by skipping the voluntary portion of offseason workouts.

When he returned for the mandatory minicamp he wasn’t bashful in saying he’d like to see his contract redone again on the heels of other NFL players getting offseason raises.

Gronk insisted there was never any acrimony between himself and the Patriots this summer over his contract.

“It didn’t weigh on me at all,” he said. “I mean, everything is always ‘in the works.’ Nothing is just gonna happen in a day when it’s something like that. It’s in the past. ... It’s go-time now.”