Patriots Team Headlines: Gronk's Injury, Others Stepping Up
By Danny Cox
After bouncing back from the loss in the season opener, the New England Patriots are now focusing on Week 3 and hoping they can take on the Houston Texans with a healthy roster. A couple of concerning injuries are starting to become a factor while back-ups are starting to get better and jump ahead of the starters.
Eric Rowe climbs the ladder as a Super Bowl hero falls
Malcolm Butler knows what it is like to be a true success in the NFL, but he's not overly used to being passed over for someone else. Still, that's exactly what happened this past weekend in the victory over the Saints as he dropped to number three on the cornerback depth chart. Eric Rowe stepped up his play and earned the position while it was the very first time that Butler had not started a game since 2014.
Right now, head coach Bill Belichick is not making it out to be a big deal and defensive coordinator Matt Patricia said that Butler wasn't actually the number three cornerback. He stated it had more to do with how match-ups were with New Orleans receivers which led to Rowe getting more playing time.
"I think Malcolm is kind of in the boat with everyone else. We're trying to get better, we're trying to improve, we're trying to put guys out there depending on the situation that we have to be in that can play the defense that we're asking them to play on that down."
Through two games, Butler's play has been slightly inconsistent while Rowe has improved in almost every aspect of his. That may or may not have something to do with it, but time will certainly tell.
Gronk has a groin injury, but he swears it is nothing for anyone to be worried about
Against the Saints, Rob Gronkowski was having a great Sunday afternoon, but a groin injury forced him to the sidelines and then, out for the remainder of the day. When the game was over, he didn't speak to reporters but he was more than sure he was all right, and it seems as if his instinct was correct.
Right now, Gronkowski is listed as day-to-day and he's incredibly relieved that his injury is "nothing serious." He always had an idea that there wasn't a big issue, and said, and he "knew there was nothing really wrong from the beginning, so, I'm good." He said he's feeling good and all is normal back at Gillette Stadium.
Wide receiver Phillip Dorsett also left the game against the Saints early, but he was dealing with a knee injury. On Monday, he admitted to being "a little sore," but hoped to practice later in the week.
The Patriots are worth a lot of money...a lot of money
Some may have thought that it would be difficult to catch up to the Dallas Cowboys as far as team worth is concerned, and they would be correct. Right now, they are the most valuable sports team in the world with an overall worth of $4.8 billion, but a few teams are catching up, and one of them happens to be the Patriots.
In the NFL, the Patriots come in second with an overall worth of $3.7 billion. The next closest team is the New York Giants at $3.3 billion. The average team worth in the NFL is $2.52 billion when looking at the team itself and the cost of their stadium when adjusted for inflation.