Tom Brady calls for a rule change after Rob Gronkowski’s injury
When Broncos defenders tried to tackle Rob Gronkowski high on Sunday, they ended up in a pile on the turf, and the New England Patriots tight end found his way into the endzone.
So later in the game, Broncos safety Darian Stewart tackled Gronkowski low, hitting him in the legs, which resulted in a knee sprain.
If pass-catchers’ heads are protected by the defenseless receiver rule, why aren’t their knees?
“You hate to see one of your guys take hits, and I do think they should change some of those rules with those defenseless receivers,’’ Tom Brady said. “I don’t think there’s anything different than a chop block. I mean, everyone else has their legs protected in the NFL. Quarterbacks get their legs protected. Defensive linemen get their legs protected. Linebackers get their legs protected. I don’t see why a defenseless receiver shouldn’t get his legs protected as well, so maybe that’s something they’ll look at in the offseason.’’
[fragment number=0]
And while the rules need changing, according to Brady, the hit to Gronkowski was not dirty.
“It’s really the only way for defenders to hit now,’’ Brady told reporters after the Patriots-Broncos game.
In the meantime, the next best thing Brady can do for Gronk — and his other pass-catchers — is to avoid throws that make him vulnerable or defenseless.
“You always try to gauge how close a defender is and his ability to close on the ball and so forth,’’ Brady said, “But yeah, it’s a real hard thing for a quarterback.
“You know when a defender is in certain positions where you can’t throw your guy, I mean you never want to throw into a certain zone where a guy is just eyeing you and lining your receiver up and it’s a big blowup. There are a lot of times it’s out-breaking routes and there’s a corner that’s sitting outside, and they come from the outside in and hit your receiver. You never really want to do that.’’
Even with this in mind, four of Brady’s pass-catchers are dealing with lower body injuries, including Gronkowski, Julian Edelman (foot), Danny Amendola (knee), and Aaron Dobson (ankle).
But perhaps players like Gronkowski don’t get their legs protected because it would be next-to-impossible to tackle the 6-foot-6, 265-pound tight end without the option of taking out his legs.
If the rules went Brady’s way, Gronk might be unstoppable.
Best sports bars to watch Patriots games
[bdc-gallery id=”109509″]
To comment, please create a screen name in your profile
To comment, please verify your email address
Conversation
This discussion has ended. Please join elsewhere on Boston.com