There has been some growing optimism about Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski in regard to his concussion he suffered against the Jacksonville Jaguars in the AFC Championship Game. It would appear that he should be ready for Super Bowl LII against the Philadelphia Eagles according to Kirk Minihane of WEEI. The tight end "will absolutely be good to go" for Super Bowl LII he says. Minihane also notes that Gronk is already working out at the facility, which is a solid sign that he's progressing nicely following the injury.
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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.
This was Ian Rapoport of NFL.com earlier in the week, who reported 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, especially in light of the most recent update. 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.
Gronk comes into the playoffs turning in an All-Pro regular season where he recorded a nice 69 catches for 1,084 yards and eight touchdowns. Certainly getting that mega-weapon back into the offense will make his quarterback's job much easier against the Eagles when they meet in U.S. Bank Stadium on Feb. 4.
[h/t 247Sports]
