The Patriots squashed a lot of concerns Sunday night by dominating the Texans, and much of that had to do with the return of tight end Rob Gronkowski. Sunday night was another excellent game for MVP candidate Tom Brady, but Gronk should be getting some MVP love.
In fact, Gronkowski may be as important to the Patriots as Brady is.
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Brady was 22-of-30 vs. Houston, throwing for 226 yards and two touchdowns. The Pats’ win snapped a two-game losing streak that came, unsurprisingly, with Gronkowski on the sidelines. Gronkowski was injured late in New England’s game vs. the Broncos, and he missed all of their surprising defeat in Philadelphia. In both of those games Brady completed less than 55 percent of his passes, as was also the case in Week 11, when the Bills focused their entire defensive game plan on eliminating Gronk.
For the season, Brady’s completion percentage is a tick less than 65 percent, proving that without Gronkowski, New England just isn’t the same. The Patriots have had Brady for all 13 of their games, but their only two losses were in games that Gronkowski did not finish.
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Beyond his impact on New England’s offense, Gronkowski is one of the most devastating receiving options in the sport, even compared with wide receivers. His 10 touchdown catches are good for a third-place tie among league leaders, he’s 10th in the NFL in receiving yards (1,018) and the only non-wide receiver inside the Top 10, and 10th in receiving yards per game (84.8).
At the moment, the MVP award is likely Cam Newton’s to lose. However, if the Panthers do suffer a defeat, or if Panthers coach Ron Rivera decides to play it safe with Newton’s health, then Gronkowski should be in the mix along with his more prestigious teammate.
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