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Patriots and Rob Gronkowski Agree on New Contract

BigKen

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This just in on CNNSE.....The Patriots and Rob Gronkowski have agreed to a new contract for 2017. Gronk goes from $5.25M to $10.75M with incentives.

Gronk was signed through 2019 and there was nothing on 2018 or 2019.

I'll try to find something written and post it.
 

BigKen

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6:46 PM ET
  • i

    Mike Reiss ESPN Staff Writer
    • Covered Patriots since 1997


FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- When it comes to contractual dealings, the New England Patriots are often shrewd with how they use leverage to their advantage. Specifically, when they have leverage on their side, many agents have relayed that it can be challenging to get the team to budge.

This is a big part of what makes Tuesday's revised contract for tight end Rob Gronkowski so notable.

The Patriots weren't obligated to do anything. In addition, Gronkowski is coming off an injury-shortened season that further lessened his own leverage.

Yet the club revised the 2017 portion of Gronkowski's deal -- giving him a chance to increase his earnings based on playing time or performance -- without touching the final two years of 2018 and 2019, per agent Drew Rosenhaus (and as reported by ESPN NFL Insider Adam Schefter).

That's a rare precedent for the team to set at a time when it had all the leverage on its side.

But at the same time, high-ranking club officials might counter by saying Gronkowski is a rare player who has regularly played by the team's rules when it comes to his contract (e.g. no holdouts, no public discord etc.). When healthy, he's the game's top tight end, and he is also a difference-maker in the community as one of the most popular Patriots of all-time.

So on the surface, this appears to be the often-hard-line-at-the-negotiating-table Patriots doing Gronkowski a solid, while possibly looking to keep relations solid in the coming years if the sides revisit an extension past 2019.

We often hear about teams asking players to take pay cuts, but it's a bit rare to see this: A club willingly revising a rehabbing player's contract that has three years remaining on it to give him a chance to earn more money.

It's another layer to the often unique dynamics between the Patriots and Gronkowski.
 

BigKen

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Restructured Rob Gronkowski deal could make TE highest paid in NFL

6:42 PM ET
  • i

    Adam SchefterESPN Senior Writer

    • ESPN NFL Insider
    • Joined ESPN in 2009
    • Former president of the Pro Football Writers of America and the author of four books
The New England Patriots and Rob Gronkowski have restructured his deal for the 2017 season, giving him a chance to become the highest-paid tight end in the NFL.

The new deal will give Gronkowski a chance to boost his salary this year from $5.25 million to $10.75 million, according to agent Drew Rosenhaus.

The new incentives include:

-- First tier, which gets Gronkowski $10.75 million with either 90 percent play time, 80 catches, 1,200 receiving yards or an All-Pro recognition (which he's made four times).

-- Second tier, which gets Gronkowski $8.75 million if he reaches 80 percent play time, 70 catches, 1,000 receiving yards or 12 touchdowns.

-- Third tier, which gets Gronkowski $6.75 million if he reaches 70 percent playing time, 60 receptions, 800 receiving yards or 10 TDs.

By comparison, in each of the past three years, Gronkowski's playing-time percentages were: 70.3 percent in 2014; 84.2 percent in '15; 31.5 percent in '16.

Gronkowski, 28, hasn't played a 16-game season since 2011, his second year in the league. Including the playoffs, he has missed 30 of the team's 92 games over the past five seasons.

The tight end has played fewer than 400 snaps in two of the past four years, including a 2016 Super Bowl season that was ended early by his third-career back surgery.
 

Yankee Traveler

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Great deal with the incentives.
Here's hoping he can make the 1st tier and another ring!!!
 

Carnzo

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Just stay healthy and he and the team will enjoy the spoils.
 

ohiopatsfan

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Heard Gronk was a full participant in the OTA's. Hopefully, the incentive-laden contract will inspire him to have a full, productive season.
 

YankeeRebel

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I often felt Gronk not playing was heavily influenced by Daddy advising him not to play hurt. Just my feeling may be 100% wrong. This being said an incentive laden contract with all the new weapons the Pats have may be best for the team.
 

nefansince75

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I often felt Gronk not playing was heavily influenced by Daddy advising him not to play hurt. Just my feeling may be 100% wrong. This being said an incentive laden contract with all the new weapons the Pats have may be best for the team.
I think another factor is Gronk would play with reckless abandon because he's Gronk. The contract gives incentive to not play every play with reckless abandon....
 

cdumler7

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I think another factor is Gronk would play with reckless abandon because he's Gronk. The contract gives incentive to not play every play with reckless abandon....

I would say his size/athleticism plays into his injuries as well. Players who have tried to go high on Gronk to make a tackle learn very quickly that it just doesn't work. He runs people over and laughs while doing it. So that has made players go lower on him plus the NFL rules of not going high on top of that and people aim lower on Gronk than other players. So he takes a lot of shots to the knees and well that area can only handle so much no matter how strong/flexible you are as a player.
 

YankeeRebel

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I think another factor is Gronk would play with reckless abandon because he's Gronk. The contract gives incentive to not play every play with reckless abandon....
So Brady will audible for reckless abandon? What will he do holler Roxbury at the line? I feel Gronk will always play that way.
 

YankeeRebel

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I would say his size/athleticism plays into his injuries as well. Players who have tried to go high on Gronk to make a tackle learn very quickly that it just doesn't work. He runs people over and laughs while doing it. So that has made players go lower on him plus the NFL rules of not going high on top of that and people aim lower on Gronk than other players. So he takes a lot of shots to the knees and well that area can only handle so much no matter how strong/flexible you are as a player.
Well, they absolutely have to hit him low and he has learned to shield himself from that when he see's it coming. I often felt the target his knee area which seems cheap to me.
 

nefansince75

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I would say his size/athleticism plays into his injuries as well. Players who have tried to go high on Gronk to make a tackle learn very quickly that it just doesn't work. He runs people over and laughs while doing it. So that has made players go lower on him plus the NFL rules of not going high on top of that and people aim lower on Gronk than other players. So he takes a lot of shots to the knees and well that area can only handle so much no matter how strong/flexible you are as a player.
There are two ways to attach Gronk, low and cheap, or hard like a missile. Low and cheap breaks his knees. The missile approach breaks everything else. His back issues last year were the result of the missile hits...

For what it's worth, Gronk coined the term "missile" as in "hits like a missile".
 

cdumler7

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There are two ways to attach Gronk, low and cheap, or hard like a missile. Low and cheap breaks his knees. The missile approach breaks everything else. His back issues last year were the result of the missile hits...

For what it's worth, Gronk coined the term "missile" as in "hits like a missile".

That is unfortunately what greatness gets you. Teams know they have to hit him and hit him hard or low and well we are seeing the results of what that does to the human body. Doesn't help he was already injury prone coming into the NFL. I just don't know how many more years his body can hold up to the beating it takes every year.
 

cdumler7

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Well, they absolutely have to hit him low and he has learned to shield himself from that when he see's it coming. I often felt the target his knee area which seems cheap to me.

I guess yes and no. I remember in high school our coaches always telling us to go low on bigger players. We had a kid in our league that was 250 lbs. playing tailback. Went on to play division 1 football. He wasn't going down any other way. So we actually spent the week working on hitting low and trying to hold onto legs waiting for others to come and help bring him down.

So my guess is many of these guys have been taught the same thing. When a 200 lb. safety is flying up to take on Gronk at what 260 lbs. he is thinking my only way of getting him down and doing my job of stopping him is go low.
 
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