Editor’s Update: Adam Schefter has confirmed the MRI revealed a torn ACL and MCL.
Rob Gronkowski suffers torn ACL, fantasy value done for 2013
The tight end was injured in the second half of Sunday’s game and is done for the year. We break down the fantasy implications.
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New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski missed the team's first six games of the season with injury. His performance had been strong since his return, with four touchdowns and three different hundred-yard games, but his season could be over now, as the star tight end suffered what early reports indicate could be a torn ACL against the Cleveland Browns Sunday. An MRI is scheduled for Monday.
The injury came in the second half of the Patriots’ eventual 27-26 win, and Gronkowski didn’t return. He had caught only two balls for 32 yards in the game to that point.
Fantasy impact: This is a crushing blow to Gronkowski, New England, and fantasy owners. A healthy Gronkowski is first or second among tight ends along with Jimmy Graham of the New Orleans Saints, and there's a clear gap before the next tier at the position. If it does turn out to be a torn ACL, Gronkowski will be done for the rest of 2013.
Fantasy owners should definitely wait for Monday’s MRI results before doing anything hasty, but it’s hard to expect anything out of Gronkowski going forward. Assuming the early reports are accurate, he’s obviously droppable in all redraft leagues. On the other hand, Gronkowski could have decent sleeper keeper value for 2014.
In Gronkowski's absence, no Patriot tight end really developed into anything, so with him out again, the fantasy beneficiaries will be the team's wide receivers, primarily Julian Edelman and Danny Amendola, though rookie Kenbrell Thompkins and the newly reacquired Austin Collie could see boosts as well.
