FOXBORO, Mass. — Tom Brady, like the rest of America, can’t even imagine trying to cover 6-foot-6, 265-pound human wrecking ball Rob Gronkowski.
Because a fully-healthy Gronk is so difficult to cover, Brady said the New England Patriots tight end gives his team a mental advantage over the rest of the NFL.
“If he can get himself in the right position, and get the defender where he wants him on the right play on the route, the defender can’t do anything about it,” Brady said Wednesday during his weekly news conference. “They know that too, so I think then they panic. Then when they panic, it’s even more of an advantage to the offense. Sometimes when you get a bigger receiver on the perimeter, then a smaller DB’s matched up on him, the mindset of the DB might even change, because they think ‘Oh my god, this guy is so much bigger and taller and stronger. What am I going to do?’ Then they’re already beat before the ball’s snapped.
“That’s a good mindset for an offensive player, when he’s making those plays, and the defenders are defensive before the ball’s even snapped. Not only are they at a physical disadvantage, but they’re at a mental disadvantage that their confidence in an ability to make a play — that plays into it too.”
Brady knows something about that, too, because sometimes a cornerback can have a similar mental advantage over a quarterback. It’s easy to assume that Darrelle Revis might have been one of those players that made Brady panic when No. 24Â still was suiting up for the Patriots’ AFC East rivals, the New York Jets.
“Sometimes you look at a corner and you don’t throw out there because you’re not as confident that maybe there’s another place to go,” Brady admitted. “That corner is doing a good job out there. Even though the ball might not go his direction, he’s still putting doubt in other people’s mind.”
Because Gronkowski is so much bigger, faster and stronger than any defensive player who’s apt to drop into coverage, the opposition has to double-team Gronk, which only makes his teammates more productive.
“He’s just tough to stop,” Brady said. “If they put extra guys to stop him, then it really gives other guys opportunities that they wouldn’t typically get. I think when Gronk does well, it really benefits all the other pass-catchers too.”
Here’s the scary part: Gronk is getting even better, too. Brady praised the 25-year-old’s smarts — not something typically associated with the oversized party animal.
“It’s man-awareness, zone-awareness, body positioning, timing of when the ball — anticipation of the ball,” Brady said. “When you spend as much time as we have practicing together, talking about corrections and adjustments, usually when you correct something, hopefully you don’t have to correct it again.”
Photo via David Butler II/USA TODAY Sports Images
