Rob Gronkowski was knocked out of the AFC title game after a tough helmet-to-helmet hit by Barry Church of the Jacksonville Jaguars, but even that hit may not keep Gronk out of the Super Bowl.
Videos by FanBuzz
This is according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com, who is reporting that Gronkowski is potentially expected to make a comeback for the Patriots' Super Bowl matchup with the Philadelphia Eagles:
"I'm told there is some optimism right now about his status for the Super Bowl. Every concussion is different, every player recovers differently. But right now, there is some positive vibes regarding Gronkowski's status for the Super Bowl," Rapoport reported.
Taken at face value, this is not an extremely surprising report. Gronkowski is easily one of the toughest players in the NFL — he's played through a handful of injuries at a high level — and it's worth noting that he did walk off the field after the hit by Church in the AFC Championship game.
He's a tough player, but concussions are no small deal, especially in today's NFL.
The good news is Gronk has two weeks to recover instead of one, and that's probably why the mood is optimistic surrounding his return.
Still, Rapoport did say that we're still some time out from hearing anything official on Gronkowski, so stay tuned.
