The New England Patriots sport the second-worst record in the NFL at 2-8. Only the New York Giants have a worse point differential. The playoffs aren't happening. So what's franchise legend Rob Gronkowski's message to the team? Don't give up!
“You can't tank right now. It's too early in the season still,” Gronkowski told Up and Adams' Kay Adams. Gronk wasn't delusional enough to say the Patriots still had a shot at the postseason, that there was a chance at turning the season around, or anything of that nature. The tight end explained it's simply too early to label this a tank job.
“It's kind of impossible to say ‘Hey, I'm tanking.' There's also guys on the team that don't wanna tank, there's guys on the team that have to put food on the plate for their families, so they're going all out, they wanna win the games, they wanna show what they have,” Gronk reasoned.
“You can't tank yet, you gotta show what you have, you gotta keep on fighting. It's too early in the season.”
Tanking, but by whom?
Tom Brady's favorite former target makes a fine point. The Patriots taking the field week after week aren't giving less of an effort, and they are trying their best to do their jobs and win games. Tanking more so comes from the team's decision makers in the front office.
As Gronkowski pointed out, players still have to worry about their futures in the league. In that sense, the Patriots' draft order is irrelevant to players, and might even be incentive to play harder — after all, play poorly, and that high draft pick just might be used to select your younger, cheaper replacement.
But Gronk isn't naive — he knows what measures a team will take to secure a franchise signal caller. So, when is the t-word allowed to be uttered, according to the future Hall of Famer?
“The only way you can possibly tank is if there is two games left in the season, and you are guaranteed the first pick or the second pick if you lost the final two games of the season. That's when it's a possibility…so you can get that quarterback that you want without trading up or losing any type of prospect to get that quarterback.”
Please join us in checking back with the Patriots in Week 17 to see if the tank has begun yet.
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