The Patriots may not have really missed Tom Brady, who finally served his 4-game suspension as the season began. (Result: Pats rolled, starting 3-1 with two different quarterbacks, though they were shut out in a loss to the Bills in week 4.) But big Rob Gronkowski missed his pal. Gronk celebrated Brady’s return to Foxborough with seven catches and a career-best 162 yards on Sunday. Gronk is raising his game with Brady back — and he was already arguably the best tight end in the NFL.
The record comes following Brady’s return to the lineup the previous week for an away game against the Browns. Gronk had five catches in that one, for 109 yards. Gronkowski’s 271 yards in back-to-back weeks are also a career high for him. Patriots won both games and are currently 5-1.
