Super Bowl 2018: Rob Gronkowski's back at practice but wouldn't play this Sunday

The New England tight end returned to practice but is still in the concussion protocol

By Will Brinson

Jan 27, 2018 at 3:50 pm ET • 1 min read

Baked into the line for Super Bowl LII, which currently features the Patriots as a 4.5-point favorite, is the idea that Rob Gronkowski will play against the Eagles. The superstar tight end suffered a concussion against the Jaguars in the first half of the AFC Championship Game and did not return to the game. It is widely believed Gronk will play in the Super Bowl, but if the game was taking place a week earlier, he would not be playing.

For some odd reason, the Patriots injury report released on Friday had designations in it if the game would be played on Sunday, Jan. 28. Gronkowski was listed as out.

Again, this does not mean Gronk will be out for the Super Bowl. It's based on if the game was played this Sunday, not Sun., Feb. 4, when the actual Super Bowl will take place.

In fact, Gronk actually returned to practice for the Patriots on Saturday. And according to Jim McBride of the Boston Globe, the Pats tight end "looked in fine form as he went through stretching, jogging, and then catching passes during individual drills" with the team practicing in full pads.

Rob Gronkowski has returned for today’s full pads #Patriots practice. Malcom Brown (foot) is the only player absent. #SuperBowlLII pic.twitter.com/N0PJcptjf4
— Jim McBride (@globejimmcbride) January 27, 2018

The Pats are slated to travel to Minneapolis for Super Bowl LII on Monday, which means there is one more day for Gronk to spend at practice in New England before starting to answer questions from the media.

Gronk being back at practice does not mean he has cleared the concussion protocol.

While he is present at the start of practice, Rob Gronkowski is still in the concussion protocol, per the club. This is another step in his progression through the protocol.
— Mike Reiss (@MikeReiss) January 27, 2018

But the return to practice before the team leaves for Minneapolis is obviously a good sign -- if you were a betting man (or woman), the smart money would be on Gronk being cleared by the time the Patriots play in Super Bowl LII.

Concussions are dangerous injuries, but they are also unique injuries, in that the timeline is different for different players. It is entirely possible Gronk does not clear the protocol by the time the Super Bowl rolls around. It seems ... likely he could even run up against the Patriots' Friday injury report with a question mark next to his name. But at this point he is likely to play, and Saturday's practice was another step towards that scenario.