It's been a while since we've had anyone question the Patriots injury reports, but tis the season and all that. Pro Football Talk's Mike Florio poses the idea that New England is "overstating [tight end Rob Gronkowski]'s health condition" in order to gain an advantage in the divisional round.
On Thursday night, here's what a source with knowledge of how the Patriots do business said when it comes to the high-stakes, single-elimination nature of the postseason: "Don't buy into it."
In other words, there's a chance that the Patriots are deliberately overstating Gronkowski's health condition in an effort to confuse the Chiefs as they finalize a game plan for Saturday.
If true, it's sort of brilliant. No one ever gets investigated or punished for putting too much on the injury report; the NFL only acts (and rarely at best) when a team fails to disclose enough. If a team discloses too much or otherwise makes the situation seem worse than it is, nothing happens...
So, yes, it could be a ruse. And, yes, information about injections to the knee may have been exaggerated and/or flat-out fabricated in order to, at a minimum, keep the Chiefs in the dark for as long as possible regarding whether and to what extent Gronkowski will play.
"Don't buy into it" is the greatest sentiment when it comes to the Patriots because it shows the complete distrust that everyone in the league has for New England.
Here, have some Gatorade. Don't trust it.
We built a jumbotron in the parking lot for our tailgaters. Don't trust it!
I don't want the leaky NFL to have my cell phone. Don't trust YOU!
Our All Pro tight end that had his knee explode against the Broncos is back on the injury report. DON'T TRUST IT.
While it's true that some team mess around with the injury report, and it's absolutely true that teams selectively leak information to mess with their opponent (see, NFL? It's okay to admit.), I don't think the Chiefs are going to prepare for the Patriots any differently.
I'm sure Gronkowski will play and that he'll be giving 100%, and that the Chiefs will be out on the field preparing to defend a 100% Gronk, injection or no injection.