The New England Patriots always seem to find a way to get themselves involved in some sort of controversy. This offseason, head coach Mike Vrabel has been the guilty party, as his years-long affair with former NFL insider Dianna Russini is continuing to get exposed, with new details emerging on a near-daily basis.
During the team’s dynastic run earlier this century, though, most of the controversy surrounding the team involved their play on the field. And with that in mind, former tight end Rob Gronkowski recently admitted that he thinks one of the more confusing calls that the Patriots benefited from during his time with the team was actually a mistake.
Rob Gronkowski Drops Truth Bomb on Infamous Myles Jack Play
It’s not too hard to find controversies from the Tom Brady/Bill Belichick era of the Patriots. “Deflategate” and “Spygate” are two of the most well-known controversies in the history of the NFL, and throughout their two-decade dynasty, there are tons of “what-ifs” sprinkled in that have left fans questioning New England’s success.
One such example came in the 2017 AFC Championship Game, which saw New England pick up a 24-20 victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars. For a point in time in the fourth quarter, though, it appeared as if Jacksonville had this game in control. After running back Dion Lewis lost a fumble, Jaguars linebacker Myles Jack scooped it up and appeared to be on his way to score a touchdown that would have given his team a 27-10 lead.
Instead, the play was curiously blown dead, despite replays showing that Jack did not appear to be down by contact. As a result, Jacksonville didn’t score, and that opened the door for New England to rally. While Gronkowski knows the play benefited his squad quite a bit, he admitted that he believes the referees made the wrong call by ruling Jack down.
“We didn’t do the cheating,” Gronkowski said in an interview with Hard Rock Bet. “It was just a call on the field at the time, but if you go back and watch it now, I don’t think he was down. I think the NFL came out and even admitted he wasn’t down. I think Tom even admitted it too. But we didn’t have anything to do with that.”
Patriots Eventually Lost Super Bowl LII to the Eagles
GettyRob Gronkowski on February 4, 2018 in the Super Bowl.
Sometimes, you need luck to help you win football games, but it’s also worth noting just how opportunistic the Patriots consistently were when they had calls go their way. The Jaguars still had a 10-point lead, even with this call going against them, but they ultimately weren’t able to hold on and close out the game.
Eventually, karma caught up to New England, as it suffered a 41-33 defeat at the hands of the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl LII. The good news for Gronk and company is that the team would simply respond by going to win it all next year, though the loss to the Eagles is one of the most disappointing in the franchise’s storied history. According to Gronkowski, though, it sounds like the Pats may have been lucky to even be in the Super Bowl that year.
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