Patriots induct Rob Gronkowski into Hall of Fame on eve of Packers game at Gillette

Rob Gronkowski is officially a Patriots Hall of Famer. The former tight end was inducted Saturday on Patriot Place Plaza outside Gillette Stadium, becoming the 38th member of the franchise's hall, according to NBC Connecticut. The station noted he is the fourth straight inductee with at least three Super Bowl titles in New England, following Julian Edelman's class of 2025. Owner Robert Kraft missed the ceremony while recovering from back surgery. Patriots.com streamed the 1 p.m. event live.

To mark the day, SB Nation's Pats Pulpit put together six plays and moments from his nine seasons with the club. Bernd Buchmasser's list starts in 2010, when New England traded up two spots in the second round to take Gronkowski 42nd overall, just ahead of Baltimore. That came despite worries about his back and a pre-draft visit to Foxborough during which he reportedly fell asleep. The list also covers the 2014 Colts game, where his 26-yard touchdown run through defenders stood alongside a block that sent safety Sergio Brown sprawling. Two fourth-down conversions late in the 2015 AFC title game in Denver showed how closely he and Tom Brady worked together.

Buchmasser's closing pick fits a career shaped by injuries. Gronkowski was limited in one Super Bowl and missed another entirely. In Super Bowl LIII, though, his seam catch on the Hoss-Y-Juke concept set up the only touchdown of the 13-3 win over the Rams. It was his last catch as a Patriot. Buchmasser called the list a "greatest hits" set rather than a complete history, and he also credited Gronkowski's blocking, which tends to get less attention than his receiving.

The timing gives the franchise a link between eras. Gronkowski's induction weekend leads directly into a home game for a team that has started to win again.

What it means for Sunday against Green Bay

The Patriots (team page) are 5-3 and host the Green Bay Packers on Sunday on Fox. They come in off a 24-19 win at Miami that followed a 30-24 loss at Chicago. Gillette Stadium has been kind to them this season: they are 3-0 at home, beating Pittsburgh 20-3, Las Vegas 45-17 and the Jets 26-19. On the road they are 2-3. Over eight games they have scored 184 points and allowed 162. Their two worst outings, a 13-10 loss at Seattle and a 35-6 loss at Jacksonville, both came away from home.

The market makes New England the favorite. On this site's board for the game, which tracks 12 venues, Novig has the Patriots favored at -160 on the moneyline, with Green Bay at +156. On the spread, Novig lists New England -3.5 at +111. The best Patriots spread price across the board is FanDuel's -110 at -3, so the venues disagree on whether the line sits above or below a field goal. Sportsbook hold on the spread runs from 3.0% to 5.1%. Novig's total is 44.5, with the over at -104 and the under at +102.

Next week's trip to Detroit looks closer. Early prices on that game have Novig listing New England at -100 and the Lions at -113.