Rob Ninkovich had strong words in the Travis Kelce-Rob Gronkowski debate
"When you're a tight end and you don't want to block, you're not really a tight end."
The days of Rob Ninkovich staying neutral about the Patriots’ next opponent are long gone. In his second career as an analyst, the former Patriots linebacker isn’t shy about expressing his opinion.
In a Friday morning radio interview on “Hardwick & Richards,” a show on San Diego station XTRA 1360, Ninkovich, who retired from the Patriots before the 2017 season, was asked about the ongoing debate over Travis Kelce and Rob Gronkowski, two of the NFL’s best tight ends.
Ninkovich said that his experience facing Kelce gave him some insight why he’d choose his former teammate over the Chiefs’ tight end.
“I mean, I’ve played against Kelce, and I’ve thrown him around like he’s a little doll,” Ninkovich said. “The guy doesn’t want to block, so when you’re a tight end and you don’t want to block, you’re not really a tight end.”
Later, Ninkovich claimed that while he couldn’t run with Kelce in pass coverage, he could beat him at the line of scrimmage.
“I haven’t played in a year and a half,” he said. “I could probably beat him right now easily in a run block game.”
After reiterating that Kelce appears to have no desire to block, Ninkovich offered his strongest critique: “He just wants to catch the ball and, you know, do his little dance and, you know, put the stripes in the side of his head with the haircuts he gets, so I just think that he’s a glorified receiver.”
On Gronkowski, Ninkovich’s argument for choosing New England’s No. 87 over Kansas City’s came down to all-around ability.
“He’s willing and able to do a lot of the things that a true tight end does well,” he said. “He does it exceptionally well, so I would say that Rob is a complete tight end, and Kelce is just a bigger receiver.”
The Patriots face the Chiefs on Sunday night at Gillette Stadium.
