Super Bowl 2012: Why Rob Gronkowski's Injury Isn't a Big Deal for Patriots

Throughout the 2011 regular season, Rob Gronkowski did it all for the Patriots.

His 90 receptions, 1,327 yards and 17 touchdowns were nothing short of spectacular. The second year tight end out of Arizona has been Tom Brady's favorite target all year long.

Standing 6'6", 265 lbs, Gronkowski is reminiscent of a lineman, and has proved to be un-guardable all year long.

Gronkowski is currently nursing a high ankle sprain that he suffered in the AFC Championship Game against Baltimore, and his status for Sunday's Super Bowl match is listed as "day-to-day".

If it turns out that the Patriots star tight end isn't healthy enough to play this weekend, it would be viewed by many as a huge blow to New England's offense. But in reality, the impact might not be as "far reaching" as some might think.

The first point worth noting is that Gronkowski has a very capable backup in Aaron Hernandez.

Although Hernandez's numbers weren't nearly as gaudy as Gronkowski's, the second year man out of Florida certainly proved he's very capable on handling the load.

Hernandez recorded 79 receptions to go with 917 yards and seven touchdowns, numbers that were often overshadowed by Gronkowski's. In fact, Hernandez still ranked among the top-five tight ends in receptions, touchdowns, and yards during the regular season.

Another aspect of the Gronkowski saga is that no one really knows whether or not he'll play until the teams take the field at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis on Sunday.

What this means is that the Giants still must spend time game planning for New England with the assumption that their start tight end will be active. If it turns out however that Gronkowski can't play, the Patriots will already have devised a scheme without him, which the Giants will have no way of preparing for.

According to ESPN.com's Mike Reiss, "Gronkowski played a whopping 96 percent of the Patriots' offensive snaps this season".

This is a staggering number, no doubt, but the fact of the matter is, if Gronkowski doesn't play, New York will have a hard time finding film on Patriots' plays that don't involve the big tight end. This will hurt the Giants more than help them when scheming in the film room seeing as it will be difficult to predict what the Patriots will throw at them.

One other thing favoring the Patriots is their confidence.

As veteran running back Kevin Faulk (who has three Super Bowl rings to his name) stated,

"One guy is not supposed to stop us. We’re supposed to execute no matter what. It’s the game. Next guy up. You know it’s been the story around here forever."

This speaks wonders about the type of program the Patriots run.

Bill Belichick doesn't need to hope other targets rise to the occasion such as Aaron Hernandez, Deion Branch, and Julian Edelman, he knows they'll step up.

That's the Patriot way. Much like the way Matt Cassel filled in admirably for the injured Tom Brady in 2008, Faulk with his fellow teammates and coaches, expect the next guy in line to fill the void left by Gronkowski this Sunday.

It's also important to note that the Patriots still have a guy on their team by the name of Tom Brady.

The three time Super Bowl Champion and two time Super Bowl MVP, has experience of excelling when the spotlight is the brightest. Expect nothing different this Sunday, when Brady takes the field in search of his 4th Super Bowl title in the past decade.

All things considered, the Patriots have other issues to work out, namely in the secondary with their 31st ranked pass defense, before Sunday's Super Bowl.

The possible absence of Rob Gronkowski should not be one of them. It's no secret that "Gronk" has been nothing short of brilliant this season, but as mentioned before, New England will find a way.

The Patriots have experience overcoming seemingly impossible situations including the "Tuck Rule" game in 2001, and Brady's ACL tear in 2008.

Expect Sunday to be no different.

From an outsider's perspective, playing without Rob Gronkowski seems like an insurmountable task.

But for Brady, Belichick and the rest of the team, it's just another day at the office, which could result in the continuance of a decade long dynasty.