Rob Gronkowski blasts Patriots over celebrating win vs. Bills
Former New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski didn't love how current New England players celebrated this past Sunday's last-second 29-25 win over the Buffalo Bills that improved the Patriots to 2-5 on the season.
"They just won one game and they celebrated, like, more than we would when we won the Super Bowl," Gronkowski explained during an appearance on the FanDuel TV "Up and Adams" program, per Andrew Battifarano of the New York Post. "That was, like, one of the most absurd celebrations. I’m like, 'Wow, they won a game.' They went that crazy. They’re acting like they’ve never been there before. … They were griddlying or griddying all over the place to an absurd level."
Patriots quarterback Mac Jones connected with tight end Mike Gesicki for the game-winning score with 12 seconds remaining in regulation, and Gesicki marked the moment with a certain celebration previously embraced by none other than Jones:
As former Patriots safety Patrick Chung pointed out to Gronkowski, this was no standard win on a Sunday afternoon. The Patriots may or may not have been a loss away from shopping Jones ahead of next Tuesday's trade deadline amid whispers suggesting team owner Robert Kraft could part ways with head coach Bill Belichick this winter if the club didn't turn things around.
"It’s a division win, very much needed," Chung mentioned. "That’s a big booster for the team. Whatever they gotta do, celebrate all you want to, just win some more games — we’ll be good."
Gronkowski, known for his fun-loving ways both during and after his playing career, has repeatedly made having to follow "The Patriot Way" under Belichick sound downright miserable. Thus, it's somewhat ironic he'd share such a hot take about players enjoying a thrilling victory they hope will save what seemed less than a week ago to be a lost season.
Jones and Belichick admittedly have plenty of work to accomplish to guide the Patriots into any playoff conversations. As of late Thursday morning, OddsChecker listed the Pats as nine-point underdogs heading into this Sunday's game at the 5-2 Miami Dolphins.
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