Tom Brady’s passer rating this season is 103.6, one of the best in the NFL. Without Rob Gronkowski on the field, however, it’s been a different story.
Brady certainly is in the running to win his third NFL MVP award this season, but maybe it should be Gronkowski who’s recognized as truly the “most valuable” player. Gronkowski went down in the Denver game and missed the Philadelphia game. It’s no surprise Brady’s passer rating for those games was 83.4, and the Patriots lost both games.
“He’s a matchup nightmare,” Brady said Tuesday morning on WEEI’s “Dennis And Callahan Morning Show.”
“He’s a freak,” Brady continued. “It’s hard to compare, obviously, different positions. I can’t say enough good things about Gronk because what he brings to our offense is just — no one in the league has someone that is just as tough a mismatch as Gronk is. He’s big, fast, tough, dependable, consistent. He’s a great teammate. He’s just a great guy. He’s a great person to have in the locker room. He’s awesome. He’s a totally different player. Julian (Edelman) is a totally different player. Randy (Moss) is a totally different player. Each of them have such unique skill sets. I’ve played with a lot of great tight ends. (Daniel) Graham, Ben Watson and Christian Fauria and all of them are very different.”
Brady also pointed out how Gronkowski’s size and skill set make him difficult not only for opposing teams to game plan for but officials, too.
“Gronk obviously is different than all the guys in the league,” Brady continued. “They talk about officiating and it is hard to officiate a guy like Gronk, because the officials don’t have anyone else to compare Gronk to. They watch all these other tight ends play and now they have to officiate Gronk. I think his style of play is just very different than everyone else’s. The play that he made to start the game, going back across the field — he’s just so tough to cover if you put a linebacker on him. If you put a safety on him like they did on the goal-line, we throw a fade. He’s 6-foot-7. He jumps. He catches the high point of the ball. He’s got ridiculous hands. He’s just always been such a great player for us since the day he walked in the door.”
Thumbnail photo via Winslow Townson/USA TODAY Sports Images
