Rob Gronkowski

How the Patriots have historically fared without Rob Gronkowski

Here's what the stats say.

Rob Gronkowski walks to the locker room after suffering an injury against the Jets.

By Hayden Bird

2 minutes to read

The Patriots were dealt a severe blow on Thursday when the team announced that Rob Gronkowski will have back surgery, rendering him out for two months.

The 27-year-old tight end has already had multiple procedures on his back since 2009, and has missed 22 games in his professional career (including the playoffs). The impact of his loss will be felt across the New England offense, as the game plan is readjusted to cope with the Gronkowski-sized hole in it.

To get an exact idea of what his loss has meant in the past, consider what Gronkowski has done despite missing so many games:

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Here’s how the Patriots have done in the past when Gronkowski was inactive:

Regular season: 14-5

Playoffs: 1-2

The statistical difference at the tight end position is stark. Over the course of his career in the regular season, Gronkowski has averaged 69.3 receiving yards and 0.77 touchdowns per-game. In regular season games without Gronkowski, Patriots tight ends have combined to average only 39.5 yards and 0.37 touchdowns per-game.

Below are the game-by-game lines (including combined tight end stats) for the 22 games without Gronkowski.

Regular season games:

Playoff games:

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