'Monday Night Football': The Patriots should be fine without Rob Gronkowski

Frank Schwab
·NFL writer

New England Patriots at Miami Dolphins
ESPN
Monday, 8:30 p.m. ET

For just about any other team, losing a player like Rob Gronkowski would be a fatal blow. The New England Patriots don’t even seem to miss him.

People love to hate the Patriots, and their ability to shake off Gronkowski’s missed games should add to that. No other team can lose stars and keep rolling along like the Patriots. The Patriots have gotten used to being without Gronkowski, because he has missed time in five of the last six seasons due to injuries. This time, he’s suspended due to a dirty hit on Buffalo Bills rookie cornerback Tre’Davious White in Week 13. It was an ugly play and Gronkowski should be happy he got just one game for it.

And the Patriots will probably still roll without him. They’re expected to destroy the Miami Dolphins even without one of their best players, though the Dolphins have snuck up on the Patriots and upset them at home before. The problem for the Dolphins is the Patriots are deep enough to withstand a loss or two.

The Patriots have been just fine when Gronkowski has missed games. Counting playoffs (and discounting a Week 17 game in 2014 in which the Patriots rested starters) the Patriots are 24-6 when Gronkowski is out. That includes a current 12-game winning streak that includes a Super Bowl win last season, and a win in the one game Gronkowski missed earlier this season.

Gronkowski will be replaced by Dwayne Allen, who is nowhere near the receiver Gronkowski is but is still better than most backup tight ends around the NFL. Also, the Patriots are expected to get back receiver Chris Hogan, who has been out with a shoulder injury. The Patriots still have red-hot Brandin Cooks, Danny Amendola and a seemingly never-ending rotation of running backs. Tom Brady and the offense have been so good this season, you never even hear anymore how slot receiver Julian Edelman suffered a season-ending injury back in August.

So the Patriots will be fine without Gronk for a week. If you want to put a very positive spin on it, the week off will help Gronkowski be healthy and fresh for a huge AFC showdown at the Pittsburgh Steelers next week. Gronkowski is one of the best players of this era, and it says something about the Patriots that they don’t even miss a beat without him.

New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski is suspended for Week 14. (AP)
New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski is suspended for Week 14. (AP)

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Frank Schwab is a writer for Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at shutdown.corner@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!

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