Rob Gronkowski was thought of to be at or near full strength coming into Sunday's game against the Texans, but it didn't last long.
Gronkowski left the game after landing hard on his previously broken arm, and it was later learned that he's miss the rest of the postseason, needing surgery on the arm.
Gronkowski has dealt with multiple injuries dating back to his college years, which raises questions and concerns over his longterm health.
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Former Patriots cornerback Ty Law thinks it's "a very legit concern", saying "he plays the game physical, he has no regard for his body when he's playing the game."
That's pretty apparent, and it doesn't look to change. Former Patriots wide receiver Troy Brown revealed that coach Bill Belichick has told players to go down before contact on purpose, but it doesn't look like Gronk has gotten that message.
"I've heard Bill go to certain receivers and ask them to get down and that type of thing," Brown said. "Some gave him what he wanted, some didn't - that would be me, I just couldn't do it. I didn't learn to play the game that way.
"He's like, 'Man, these teams are getting fired up hitting you, they're getting jacked up hitting you like that.'
"Deion Branch and all those guys, David Givens, they listened initially, David Patton and all that stuff, that's fine, that wasn't me. Gronkowski doesn't play the game that way. Could you imagine a big 6-foot-6, 280-pound tight end sliding down before somebody hits him? That's not going to work, that's just not his style of football, and it may affect him in the long run."