Gronk On 2014 Debut: 'Everything Feels Good'
BOSTON (CBS) -- While the result at the end of the game was not what Rob Gronkowski was hoping for, the Patriots tight end was happy to be playing football on Sunday afternoon.
Gronkowski played in his first game since Week 14 last season, when his ACL was torn apart thanks to a devastating hit from Cleveland Browns safety T.J. Ward. Gronk was held out of all four preseason games, but said his goal was to play in all 16 regular season games this year.
Though he was eased into action on Sunday, he's on the right path to achieving that goal.
The All Pro tight end played 38 of the game's 86 snaps, according to ESPN's Mike Reiss, finishing the afternoon with four catches for 40 yards and a touchdown on 11 targets. After hauling in a six-yard touchdown pass from Brady in the second quarter, Gronk unleashed his patented ferocious spike to let the NFL world know he is back.
"It feels good to get the first one," Gronkowski said following New England's 33-20 loss in Miami. "Just need to keep making plays like that; we have to make more plays as a team and keep on improving."
As for his surgically repaired knee, Gronk said it's all good.
"Everything feels good. I feel good so we'll just keep on playing, have some good practices this week, and keep working hard to get better," he said. "We can improve in a lot of areas."
The Patriots limited Gronkowski's snaps, as he played just one down in the third quarter, but he was out there any time New England found themselves in the red zone. After such a long absence from game-action, Gronkowski said his timing with quarterback Tom Brady is something they'll be working on in the coming week.
"It was fine; definitely can improve but that's what practice is for and what playing the game is for," said Gronkowski, who wasn't cleared for contact until late in the preseason. "I know we hadn't played together in a game in awhile, but you can always improve in every area and we'll be working on that for sure."
As for starting the season off with a loss, the first time in Gronkowski's five years in New England that has happened, the whole team will be looking to fix what went wrong in Miami before they turn their attention to next week's opponent: The Minnesota Vikings.
"You win as a team and lose as a team," said Gronkowski. "Myself, I just have to keep on improving every single week."
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