Why is Gronk so valuable?

[Fencer]

Infectious personality aside -- -- there are three main components to Gronk's value:

• Receiving stats.
• Coverage and other attention he draws, allowing other guys to put up receiving stats.
• Blocking.

Gronk's receiving stats are great, but they wouldn't have many people ranking him as a Top 5 player in the league if he were a WR.

He certainly is double or triple-teamed at times, especially if you count attempted jams or whatever. But it's not obvious to me that he demands more attention than a very top WR.

Obviously, Gronk is a vastly better blocker than any WR, and indeed better than his fellow TEs, at the least the ones we notice because they also do some receiving. (Is he really a better blocker than other teams' equivalents to Cannon or Fleming? Probably not.) On the other hand, the Patriots' running game, while decent, is nothing special.

So is Gronk really more valuable than the top couple WRs? If so, why?

 

[manxman2601]

Gronk is a mismatch maker. Too athletic for a linebacker, too big for a DB. Unless the WR is a Randy Moss, a really good WR can be schemed against. you can put your #1 CB on him. You can double team him with your safety, you can jam him with two defenders. There are ways to scheme a top WR out of the game. I don't see how you do that with Gronk. With his catch radius, even putting three DBs on him is no guarantee because Gronk can outreach them all. Gronk is the JJ Watt of the offense in the NFL, a completely dominant player that also happens to be a freak of nature. I would rather try to defend any of the WRs playing today than I would Gronk.

 

[smg93]

Let me state the obvious:

He is a fast and very large human being

 

[PATS16N0]

Cause he's ****ing awesome.

 

[manxman2601]

Let me state the obvious:

He is a fast and very large human being

What I said in seven lines, you said in nine words. You hit the nail squarely on the head.