Pats tight end Gronkowski likely to miss 49ers clash

NEW YORK — New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski has a suspected punctured lung and is likely to miss Sunday›s game against San Francisco, the NFL website reported on Monday. Gronkowski is undergoing further tests to determine the exact nature of the ailment but was injured during the Patriots› 31-24 loss to the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday. It was unclear when Gronkowski sustained the injury but he missed five plays after taking a big hit from Seattle safety Earl Thomas. «That was a big hit — probably one of the hardest I›ve got hit in my career, for sure,» Gronkowski told reporters on Sunday. «It›s a little tough to breathe, but once it comes back, you›re good. He hit me fair and square. It›s football.» On the game›s final play, Gronkowski and Seahawks safety Kam Chancellor got tangled up in the end zone on an incomplete pass. Without the four-time Pro Bowler, New England will turn to Martellus Bennett, who recorded seven catches for 102 yards against Seattle. The game, what could have been an expected setback instead became one of Seattle›s most impressive regular season wins under coach Pete Carroll. «We›ve had our struggles, but fortunately enough we›ve been on the positive side of it,» Seattle wide receiver Doug Baldwin said after the game. «So, as we continue to get healthy and continue to execute and get better at that, I think we›ll continue to improve and hopefully continue to win. Seattle›s 31-24 victory over New England will be remembered for the final sequence — one eerily similar to when the teams met in the Super Bowl two years ago, except this time it was the Patriots who threw a failed pass from the 1-yard line. At Super Bowl XLIX, Russell Wilson›s pass was intercepted by Malcom Butler, giving New England its fourth championship. On Sunday, Tom Brady›s lob fell incomplete after an end-zone collision between Rob Gronkowski and safety Kam Chancellor, sending the Seahawks home with an unlikely victory. It won›t be considered one of Seattle›s most important victories under Carroll — there were too many games earlier in his tenure, before the Seahawks were established as regular contenders, that created the base for what›s become a four-year run as one of the top teams in the NFC. But considering the circumstances, it ranks among the most impressive. Seattle was playing just six days after outlasting Buffalo on Monday night, traveling across the country on Friday for a Sunday night game against a rested Patriots squad that hadn›t played since winning at Buffalo on Oct. 30. It was a scenario set for Seattle to fail. Instead, the Seahawks thrived. «The mentality in believing that you›re going to get it done, remaining confident, finding the confidence that it takes to execute well, comes from experience and really good leadership,» Carroll said. «The guys, they were in it to win the thing all the way to the last inch and found a way.» The victory was encouraging, and so was the re-emergence of Seattle›s offense following a sluggish first half of the season. Baldwin created headaches for defensive backs, especially near the end zone, where he caught three touchdowns for the first time since Week 14 of last season. Wilson looked as healthy as he has all season, throwing for 348 yards, and showing the elusiveness and ability to extend plays with his legs that›s been absent since suffering ankle and knee injuries in the first three weeks of the season.