Broncos’ Chris Harris says to hit Rob Gronkowski in his knees

Broncos cornerback Chris Harris says the best way to stop Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski is to hit him in the knees.

The Denver Broncos and New England Patriots are squaring off in the AFC Championship Game on Sunday, and it will be a rematch from a physical game the two teams had in Denver earlier this season. During that game, Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski hurt his knee and was carted off the field.

With Gronkowski as the big target to stop this week, if the Broncos are going to move on, the Denver defense has a strategy for stopping him that might not sit well with some folks.

According to Broncos cornerback Chris Harris, who was a guest on ESPN’s Sportscenter, the Denver defense needs to hit Gronkowski right in the knees.

"“You gotta hit him low, man — hit him in his knees,” Harris said. “That’s the best chance you have of hitting him.”Harris went on to say that Gronk couldn’t be brought down by just one player — unless that player took out his legs.“You gotta take his legs out or hold on and wait for everybody, wait for the gang to come on and gang tackle him,” Harris added."

While Gronkowski has had history with knee injuries and his comments could come off as advocating for dirty hits, Harris seems to be more pointing at the notion that Gronkowski is so physically imposing that tackling him up high is near impossible.

Hitting a player low in the knees on purpose is as dirty as dirty plays come, but there are ways of doing it without being dirty. With head safety issues in the league, players are hesitant to go up high on players for fears of penalties or repercussions.

So if the Broncos are going to stop Gronkowski, Harris thinks they have to go low on him.