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After Rob Gronkowski re-injured his forearm in the divisional playoffs last year, many people thought he would be good to go to start the 2013 regular season. Fast forward to Week 4 of the season, and Gronk is still out with no known timetable for a return to action. For many New England Patriots and NFL fans alike, his continued absence is puzzling at this point.
It is even more discouraging when you think about the fact that his arm seems to still be a problem, as opposed to his recent back surgery. That leads me to team orthopedist Dr. Thomas Gill. Gill has had a very rough track record that has followed him throughout sports. For example, before he was the orthopedist for the Patriots, he was a team physician for the Boston Red Sox.
During his time with the team, he performed a surgery on outfielder Mike Cameron that went awry, causing him to miss the rest of that season. He also advised Jacoby Ellsbury that a rib injury would only keep him out a short time, but he ended up missing most of the 2010 season.
Perhaps the most astonishing example of his incompetence is the fact that, according to BoSox Banter, 19 different players were placed on the disabled list for the team in 2010 while he was with the team for nearly 1000 total games among them.
While with the Patriots, Gill has also been in some hot water due to his medical practices that are unrelated to Gronkowski. In July, the NFLPA filed a grievance against him regarding Jonathan Fanene. To make a long story short, they believed that Gill wasn’t acting in Fenene’s best interest and may have withheld information from the team regarding his medical situation.
As you can see, Gill’s track record is against him and he could very well be responsible for Gronkowski’s prolonged absence. After all, he has done each of Gronk’s arm surgeries, which seem to have gone wrong in some way or another.
Will Gellman is a New England Patriots Writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @Will_Gellman, “Like” him on Facebook or add him to your network on Google.
Related Links:
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