Steelers will make a group effort to defend Gronk

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New England Patriots’ tight end Rob Gronkowski has propelled himself to the top of the NFL charts as one of the best tight ends of all time.

A major part of that is because of his size.

Ahead of the Patriots and the Pittsburgh Steelers’ matchup this coming Sunday, the Steelers will be looking for a “group effort” to defend him. Through five career games against the Steelers, Gronkowski has 30 catches, 496 yards and eight touchdowns.

“We’ve got several guys we’re going to try to throw (at him),” safety Mike Mitchell said. “It’s going to require coaches calling the right calls, it’s going to be us executing everything they call to a T. There’s no one real answer.”

The Steelers could possibly look to use 6-foot-1 safety Sean Davis or 6-foot-4 outside linebacker TJ Watt against Gronk.

Whoever has that job for the day will surely be working hard. When asked why the Patriots’ star tight end is so hard to defend, Mitchell said it simply: “He’s 6-7.”

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