The New England Patriots cannot be trusted to be forthcoming or transparent when it comes to the injury statuses of their players on a week to week basis. Head coach Bill Belichik notoriously cannot be trusted. The players themselves cannot be trusted. The question is, can league sources ever feel good about the information they have when it comes to the Patriots?
More from New England Patriots
- NFL rumors: Dalvin Cook suitor maintaining very ‘real’ interest
- Patriots backup plan for DeAndre Hopkins is a shot in the dark
- NFL rumors: Patriots screwed themselves with DeAndre Hopkins pursuit
- Bill O’Brien arrival did not end the road for one disliked Patriots coach
- 3 biggest mistakes from the NFL offseason
That question lingers as we consider a report Sunday morning regarding the plan with Patriots’ tight end Rob Gronkowski for the team’s opening game against the Miami Dolphins. Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk reports the following:
"Unofficially, Gronkowski’s assessment is correct. Per a league source, Gronk is expected to play, but not to play a lot."
Florio then notes that Gronkowski did not play any preseason games, which might factor into his workload.
Gronkowski’s 2013 season was lost due to injuries to his arm and then a torn ACL. Besides the questions about how much he will play, it will also be interesting to see how well he plays. Given his status as one of the truly physically gifted players in the entire NFL, it seems like we are all taking for granted that ‘Gronk’ will return and immediately be dominant once again.
There might be an adjustment period for Gronkowski when it comes to re-acclimating to NFL game-speed. That process starts Sunday with a limited workload…if you think that the information coming out of Patriots’ camp is actually good.
Stay tuned to FanSided for all of the latest on the New England Patriots and all your NFL news and analysis as the 2014 season kicks off.