Rob Gronkowski knows he needs to bring his game against Giants

By Jared Chandler

The New England Patriots pride themselves on never underestimating their opponents. This week brings nothing different.

In a conference call with the New York media, Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski praised the Giants defense for their physical play.

“They’re just always running around, always around the ball, always being physical, high-energy type players that just look like they just love the game of football and they’re just playing for the love,” Gronkowski said.

The glaring stat to note is the Giants currently rank last in the NFL in total defense and have had trouble defending tight ends. Gronkowski still isn’t overlooking them.

“I can go out on any Sunday and if I’m not bringing my game, I can get covered by anyone and not have a good game,” he said.

The Patriots will need to gear up for one of the NFL’s best pass rushers, as Jason Pierre-Paul returned last Sunday from his July 4 incident involving fireworks. He missed the team’s first eight games of the season.

“With Pierre-Paul returning, he’s an unbelievable player — strong, fast, has the whole package at defensive end, definitely can give them a boost,” Gronkowski said. “We’ve just got to be prepared. We’ve got to be prepared for a whole, solid defense and prepare for everyone and come out and be ready for Sunday.”

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