Rob Gronkowski didn’t mind serving a suspension in 2017 when the New England Patriots went 13-3 and made it to the Super Bowl, where they lost to the Philadelphia Eagles.
That season was an odd one for New England, with reported tension growing between Bill Belichick, Tom Brady and Gronk. Even though the team was having plenty of success, there were plenty of negative storylines surrounding the team.
Gronkowski addressed the strange situation during the eighth episode of the ESPN+ documentary series, “Man in the Arena,” about Brady’s career. Gronk illustrated just how weird it was while reflecting upon getting suspended for an extremely dirty hit on Tre’Davious White.
“I was happy,” Gronkowski said of learning about his suspension. “I was finally happy. I was like, ‘Yes, I’m away from football for a week. I get to recover my body.’ I mean, when you’re running full speed into people, it definitely was taking a toll on me.
” … I lost a paycheck — it was about $300,000, that game check — and I didn’t even care one bit. I was just glad I had a week off from football, because I needed it.”
Gronk suggested he didn’t mind getting away from the emotional tension, too.
“It was a tough season. It was a grind season, for sure. Let me tell you, it wasn’t really that fun of a year,” Gronkowski said. “It was just a little eerie, the atmosphere with the Patriots.”
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