FOXBORO, Mass. — On Feb. 21, 2014, Bleacher Report’s Chris Trapasso published an article titled “Why Troy Niklas Could Be the Next Rob Gronkowski.”
“Troy Niklas,” Trapasso wrote, “is a 21-year-old tight end in Rob Gronkowski’s body.”
That comparison made Niklas chuckle.
“It was just an article,” the 6-foot-6, 270-pound tight end said Thursday morning. “You know how they do that. It’s kind of a disgrace to the players in the NFL.”
So far, Niklas has yet to resemble the second coming of Gronkowski. He primarily was a blocking tight end during his four seasons with the Arizona Cardinals, catching just 19 total passes for 203 yards and three touchdowns. That’s the equivalent of about two games for Gronk.
Now, the 25-year-old is getting a fresh start with the New England Patriots, who signed him to a one-year contract earlier this month. He plans to spend the spring and summer learning from Gronkowski, who is coming off his fifth All-Pro season.
“I’m really excited about it,” Niklas said. “He’s obviously one of the best tight ends to have ever played. I’m just excited to learn from him and play with him. … There’s just something about players like him that have had success on that kind of level. They have little nuanced things that they know and they kind of just pass down, so I’m just excited to learn some of those little things that he does in his game that make him great.”
Niklas, who admitted he didn’t watch much football during his college career at Notre Dame, said he dug into Gronkowski’s highlights after seeing the comparisons between him and the Patriots star. Needless to say, he was impressed.
“When I was coming out for the draft, (some in the media) were like, ‘(Gronkowski) is a guy that you’re similar to,’ ” he said. “(Then) I really got to watch some tape on him and see what a beast he is. The guy’s just a monster. He’s definitely a guy that I think any tight end would want to model their game (after).”
Niklas visited the Patriots before the 2014 NFL Draft. The Cardinals wound up drafting him in the second round (52nd overall).
“I was really excited about maybe getting to come here, but that’s how the draft is,” Niklas said. “You don’t really get to choose. But I was happy with my time in Arizona and very thankful that they drafted me. I had a great time there.”
Though Niklas never lived up to his draft status for the Cardinals, he did turn in his best season to date in 2017. He played in 15 games, starting 11, and finished with 11 catches for 132 yards and a touchdown. As the primary backup to starter Jermaine Gresham, he was on the field for 414 offensive snaps, surpassing his total from his first three seasons combined.
The Patriots currently have five tight ends under contract: Gronkowski, Niklas, Dwayne Allen, Jacob Hollister and Will Tye.
