Giants want to 'out-Gronk' Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski
Rob Gronkowski of the New England Patriots reacts after scoring a touchdown during the first quarter against the Miami Dolphins at Gillette Stadium on Oct. 29, 2015 in Foxboro, Mass. Credit: Getty Images / Jim Rogash
The Giants have not had much success against tight ends this season. They have allowed a league-high 58 receptions by the position, the second-most receiving yards (684) and five touchdowns in nine games.
Now here comes Gronk. Gulp!
Yet Landon Collins said he is excited to go up against Rob Gronkowski this week, which is not the normal reaction for defensive players.
"That's one of the best tight ends," Collins, a rookie safety, said on Wednesday. "I've been watching him on TV and all you see is that big ol' spike, so I definitely want to see what other people have done and gone up against."
Collins will be one of the key players the Giants count on to try to slow down Gronkowski. Tom Coughlin said the Giants will use a variety of players in that pursuit -- safeties, linebackers, even cornerbacks -- but Collins figures to see the most time lined up against him.
Normally the playbook against such a tight end would be to jam him at the line and disrupt his route-running. Against Gronkowski?
"You can't do that," Collins said. "He's too big and too strong so you can't always do that. You have to play around with it. Play off, play on. Go back and forth with him so he doesn't know what you're doing and it disrupts his running and his timing with Tom Brady."
The key, Collins said, is to out-Gronk him.
"Just try to beat him to his route," Collins said. "Some of us are faster than him so we can read his routes quicker and try to beat him to the spot."
The Giants have been exposed by tight ends such as Ben Watson of the Saints (nine catches, 147 yards, one TD) and Jason Witten of the Cowboys (14 receptions, 133 yards and two TDs in two games). But there are no parallels for what Gronkowski can bring.
"He's a rare athlete, let's face it," Coughlin said.
Collins said it was strangely comforting to actually study Gronkowski rather than just watch the highlights he has been seeing for the last few years.
"You see what's actually happening," he said. "On TV you only see when the quarterback throws him the ball and you think he's always wide open. So you see what actually happens and you know what will help you out."
No one has yet been able to curtail Gronkowski. He's had one game with less than 50 receiving yards this season. He has four 100-plus yard games and has caught seven TDs.
"He can take over the game," Collins said. "Once he gets going, it's kind of hard to stop him. You get on the hot seat you have to figure out a way to break it down, slow it down as quickly as possible . . . We have to slow that down."
Slowed down would be good. Can he be stopped?
"Yeah, anybody can be stopped in this league," Collins said. "We just have to figure out a way to stop him and continue to do that."
Tom Rock began covering sports for Newsday in 1996 and became its NFL columnist in 2022. He previously was Newsday's Giants beat writer beginning in 2008.
