Rob Gronkowski Gets Back to Full-on 'Gronk' Mode in Patriots' Win over Bills

There's a difference between Rob Gronkowski and Gronk.

Rob Gronkowski is a tight end for the New England Patriots who has dealt with some injuries during his career and who may take a little bit of time to get back up to speed when he returns from those injuries. 

Gronk is a beast who is tough to cover and nearly impossible to tackle once he gets moving. 

In the first four weeks of the season, we were seeing the former. Over the past two weeks and in the Patriots' 37-22 win over the Buffalo Bills, we have seen more and more of the latter.

Gms	Rec	Yds	Y/R	TD
First 4	13	147	11.3	3
Last 2	13	194	14.9	1
Total	26	341	13.1	4

Gronkowski had 13 receptions on 26 targets for 147 yards and three touchdowns in the first month of the season. Gronk has a combined 13 catches on 20 targets for 194 yards and a touchdown in the last two games. 

His numbers could have been even better Sunday if a holding penalty hadn't wiped away an 18-yard touchdown catch in the fourth quarter on what would have been a brilliant back-shoulder fade he climbed the ladder to catch. But even without that reception, it was a vintage day for Gronk.

Quarterback Tom Brady couldn't be happier.

"Oh yeah. He's back," Brady said. "Absolutely."

It wasn't just the numbers Gronk put up against the Bills and the Cincinnati Bengals. It was the ruthless, hard-nosed manner in which he performed. He did it all—from a 35-yard pass where he was lined up on the outside and ran straight downfield to a 10-yard catch-and-run on a tight end screen. There were athletic cuts, plants and bursts to evade defenders, and there were heavy hits where he lowered his shoulder.

The Patriots had better hope Gronk can continue to sustain that type of workload. He left the game in the third quarter after having the wind knocked out of him on an incomplete pass. He returned to the field shortly thereafter, setting off a collective sigh of relief across New England.

The tight end position has been central to the Patriots' offensive attack over the years, and Gronk continues to prove why.

"He's a great option out there, so if they don't cover him, he usually gets it, and if they put extra guys on him, then it frees everybody else up," Brady said. "He's tough to stop. You put a safety on him, he's got size. You put a linebacker on him, he's got speed. He's been that way since he's been in the NFL. He's had a lot of touchdowns. He's playing with confidence, and the kind of enthusiasm and energy he brings is awesome."

Brady has a good point. It's not just what Gronk does when the ball is in his hands but how he opens things up for his teammates. In the first month of the season, we saw Brady go to his tight end often when double-covered.

It's hard to blame Brady for hoping that one of his biggest and most athletic pass-catchers could make a play when covered, but the extra attention devoted to Gronk was opening up his other receivers.

And now, he's begun to find them. 

Wide receiver Brandon LaFell has also been coming into his own, with 15 catches on 28 targets for 282 yards and three touchdowns over the past four weeks. Julian Edelman remains a force, and leads the team in receptions by a wide margin (he has 40; the next closest is Gronkowski with 26). Brady hit 10 different receivers on the day.

Gronk is making an impact even when he doesn't run a route. One of his best assets over the years has been his ability as a blocker. He had struggled in that area leading into Sunday's win but proved he was making strides when he blocked a defender around Brady to allow his quarterback extra time to find tight end Michael Hoomanawanui on a checkdown that resulted in a first down.

It was no surprise that the Patriots wanted to manage Gronkowski's workload early in the season, coming off a knee injury that ended his 2013 season. Now that Gronk is playing almost a full complement of snaps, the offense is playing almost as efficiently as we've seen it play in recent years.

The Patriots offense is back, and it's no coincidence that its resurgence has come with the departure of Gronkowski and the return of Gronk.

Unless otherwise noted, all quotes obtained via team news release.

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