“Probably underrated. He doesn’t really sometimes come across in that role but what I see, Rob’s very attentive, very coachable. You tell him what you want him to do, he works very hard to do it the way you want it done. He’s a smart football player. He understands leverage, he understands position, he understands technique. He understands the concept of what you’re trying to do. We move him around at lot of different positions. He has a really a lot to learn.
Probably other than the quarterback, the tight end position on our offense is the hardest to play because you have all the protections, all the running game and you have routes from sideline to the middle of the field to occasionally even in the backfield. There’s really no plays off mentally for that position. His work ethic, his ability to work with his teammates, whether it’s the quarterback, the offensive tackles, the other tight ends or even with the defensive players is good. He’s really a great guy to have on the team. Forget about the talent and all that. Just the way he goes about his job, the way he works, trains in the weight room, his physical conditioning, his mental concentration and focus and desire to be well and do well and improve are very, very good.”
– Bill Belichick praising Gronk for being an ‘underrated’ leader (x)