FOXBORO -- One of the plays which will be talked about at least for a few days following the AFC championship is the hit Jaguars safety Barry Church had on Rob Gronkowski at the end of the first half.
Gronkowski was running a seam route and Church came from his position in the middle of the field and laid the big tight end out as the ball was in his hands. The ball fell incomplete, but Church was called for an unnecessary roughness penalty because of the helmet-to-helmet contact. Gronkowski struggled to get to his feet and needed help just to stand from Chris Hogan.
Trainers immediately took Gronkowski to the locker room and he didn't return because of the head injury.
Speaking after the game, Church felt bad, but said it's tough when it comes to hitting Gronkowski because of his size.
"I just tried to dislodge the ball," he said. "He's a big dude and I was just trying to dislodge the ball, but I guess they felt it was too high of a hit. I hope he's healthy. I know he didn't come back, so I hope he's alright. It was a tough call, but you have to go with what they call. It's the toughest play in football. If you go low for the knees you are considered a dirty player and if you go high, they throw the flag at you. It's a bang-bang play and I was just trying to play football. I tried to lead with my shoulder."
Added Church: "Yes, it's tough. That guy is humongous. If you wait for him to catch it and bring him down, he might run you over. You have to go with it and try and hit him in the right target zone, but going 100 miles an hour like that is nearly impossible."
Before he got hurt, Gronkowski had one catch for 21 yards.
