FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — You can’t blame Chris Hogan if he looks frustrated on the football field.

Anyone in his position would be.

A free agent this offseason, Hogan leads all Patriots receivers in offensive snaps, but his production is down from a year ago. On Sunday, against Buffalo, Hogan played more offensive snaps than any skill player, but didn’t receive a target for the first time in his Patriots career. This week, Hogan said he and Tom Brady were still on the same page.

Of course he wants to contribute, but you won’t see him complain.

“I think you’re just being a competitor,” Hogan said.

Hogan hasn’t caught more than two passes since Week 7 in Chicago. Over the last seven games, Hogan has failed to catch a pass in four contests.In 15 games, Hogan has 29 catches, 468 yards and three touchdowns. Last year, in nine games, he had 34 catches for 439 yards and five touchdowns.

Advertisement

In the end, he says, he’s happy if the Patriots are winning.

“There’s going to be games where you asked to do things that people aren’t always going to see,” Hogan said. “As a receiver, whoever that is that’s asked to take on those roles, I think everyone embraces that and does whatever is best for the team to try to get wins.”

AFTER A restructuring of his contract last offseason, tight end Rob Gronkowski is in position to hit none of his incentives. Back and ankle injuries have lingered, marking this one of his least productive seasons.

On Wednesday, Gronkowski – who did not catch a pass against Buffalo last week – deflected when asked about his future, say he’s focused on the present.

“I haven’t been thinking about that at all,” Gronkowski said of his 2019 plans. “We’re on the last game, going into Week 17, we’ve got the Jets. That’s all I’m really worried about as of now.”

Gronkowski finished the 2017 with 69 catches for 1,084 yards and eight touchdowns. He was named to the Pro Bowl (his fifth selection) and as a first-team All-Pro for the first time in two years. It paid off with Gronkowski earning an extra $2 million in incentives. He finished with the top tier of $10.75 million.

After Super Bowl LII he said that retirement was on his mind. At this point, how could it still not be?

Gronkowski started 2018 catching seven passes for 123 yards and a touchdown in Week 1. Little did anyone know, it’d be Week 14 before Gronkowski would have another 100-yard game.

With 45 receptions, 658 yards and three touchdowns, Gronkowski has one year for $12 million left on his contract.


Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.

Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.