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Precisely. Had NE not rushed Gronk back on the field, he would have been completely fine by February and not had all the arm surgeries, or the reinjury, that color people's perception. The arm also had nothing whatsoever to do with Gronk's knee injury, and I read that current medical procedure has a negligible re-injury risk.
I'll buy the case that Gronk is an injury risk due to his style of play, but that isn't the crux of most arguments, nor is it all that particular to Rob.
Agreed. I think the Pats are just more willing to bring vulnerable players back for the playoffs, because the stakes are that much higher. In the last two years, that's really burned them on both Gronk and Dobson, as those reinjuries have cost the players their offseasons, and have had ramifications going into the following season. Going forward, maybe they'll revise their philosophy on using reinjury-prone players in the playoffs. Or maybe not. In either case, I think that's more a reflection on the team than on Gronk/Dobson.