Gronkowski injury cost Patriots heavily

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No one could blame Tom Brady for his one, foolish heave. All he saw was Rob Gronkowski open and deep. Gronk, the best tight end in football, the 6-foot-6 freak with hands bigger and softer than any baker’s mitts, had a few yards on Giants linebacker Chase Blackburn, a guy who couldn’t even make the New York roster in September. Brady’s mind read total mismatch.

Except this wasn’t the same Gronkowski, the tight end with the record 17 touchdown receptions and 1,327 receiving yards this season. This was the Gronkowski with the weirdest box-like wrap around his severely sprained left ankle that really didn’t allow him to play like Superman.

The two players jumped for Brady’s pass and, guess what, Blackburn came down with it. Blackburn was the too-slow linebacker who was working as a substitute teacher earlier in the season when the Giants called him up. Instead, he made Gronkowski look awkward and unathletic, if that’s possible. And he also put an interception on Brady’s Super Bowl résumé.

“I had him vertical the whole way,” Blackburn said of covering Gronkowski. “I had to carry Rob and I heard the crowd go wild a little bit and I thought we had a sack. I continued to see ‘Gronk’ go up the field and just tried to stay with him. I saw him look back so I looked back for the ball. When I spotted it, I tried to block out and go up for a rebound like we were playing basketball.”

The Patriots lost this game because Brady was operating without his favorite, most reliable weapon. Don’t get me started on Wes Welker. I love the guy, pound for pound the best player to ever come out of Texas Tech, but we all saw him fail to catch the pass that could have iced this game for New England with four minutes left and put Belichick and Brady in the class of Chuck Noll and Terry Bradshaw.

Oh, well.

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We suspected that Gronkowski would play, but probably wouldn’t be at his best. That's what ultimately came to fruition. He couldn’t really separate much from defenders. He couldn’t cut and then dart up field and run away from linebackers and safeties. When he did run, he was running and cutting in pain.

Brady targeted him three times. He caught two balls for 26 yards before the interception.

On Brady’s Hail Mary on the Super Bowl’s final play, Giants safety Kenny Phillips batted it away from Aaron Hernandez, New England’s other tight end, and the ball sort of hung a bit, flying back toward the goal line. Gronkowski eyed it, knowing catching this deflection could win the game.

But, come on, folks. His ankle wasn’t strong enough for him to push off and dive and catch that ball. There would be no miracles for him and Brady. It was simple wishful commentary by the television folks.

New England fans must believe that this outcome might have been different if Gronkowski came into the game with a healthy ankle, feeling great.

Belichick said his team competed at a high level and that they lost because the Giants made a few more plays than his players did.

He’s right. A healthy Gronkowski probably out-jumps Blackburn or at least snares the ball. It makes sense; he had done it all season long.

It is so hard to reach the Super Bowl. It’s hard to fathom that the Patriots, the so-called dynasty of the last decade, haven’t won a championship since the 2004 season, seven seasons ago.

“All I know is that we didn’t do enough to win this game,” Gronkowski said afterwards.

“I didn’t do enough.”

But, man, it’s hard to compete in a title fight with one good leg.

“He played pretty well,” Blackburn said of Gronkowski. “He played a lot of plays, a lot of snaps. He continued to work. That’s what a fighter is going to do — he’s not going to sit there on the sidelines.”