The Chicago Bears hung 59 points on Carolina in Week 1. Somehow, Colston Loveland walked away without a catch.
If Rob Gronkowski is right, there won't be many Sundays like that for the young tight end.
Gronkowski is buying into Loveland
Gronkowski returned to "Hot Ones" for an episode released Monday. Host Sean Evans finished things off by asking the former Patriots star to fire off a few NFL predictions.
Naturally, one involved tight ends.
Evans asked Gronkowski to name a player at the position who could have a monster season. He went straight to Loveland.
"I'm going to go with Colston Loveland," Gronkowski said. "He has the skills, he has the attributes. He's going to be a phenomenal tight end."
That's a nice endorsement to have.
Gronkowski isn't guessing what it takes to become a difference-maker at the position. He caught 621 passes for 9,286 yards and 92 touchdowns during a career that will eventually land him in Canton.
Loveland has a long way to go before entering that kind of company. For now, getting on the stat sheet would be a good place to start.
Loveland's Week 1 was quieter than expected
Chicago didn't need him much against Carolina.
Loveland saw three targets without a reception as Caleb Williams spread the ball around in a wild 59-37 win. Cole Kmet had the better afternoon of the Bears tight ends, finishing with two catches for 35 yards and a touchdown.
Still, Loveland wasn't sitting around watching everyone else have fun. He was regularly on the field and running routes. The opportunities were there even if the catches weren't.
That's probably more useful after one game than obsessing over a zero in the box score.
Ben Johnson has an offense loaded with options, and Week 1 offered a pretty ridiculous example of how many different ways Chicago can attack a defense. Loveland won't be featured every Sunday.
Gronkowski is betting he'll have his share of big ones.
For a Bears offense that already looked dangerous without a Loveland reception, that's not a bad thought to carry into Week 2.
| More Bears on DaWindyCity |
Add us as a preferred source on Google