Legend of Gronk in Danger of Ending Early? Could Rob Gronkowski be Done?

Rob Gronkowski is one of the most exciting people in sports today. The camera loves this guy. He didn't knock it out of the park when he guested on SportsCenter not too long ago, but he didn't suck. Rumors have circulated about a possible Gronkowski reality show (you are going down Kardashians!).

Life is good. It's just a shame that the football end of it that made him a household name before we knew what a party guy he is could come to an end sooner rather than later.

Downward dog? Nah! Downward Gronk baby!

I doubt there is a football fan anywhere that isn't well-versed in Gronk's arm issues. On Monday he had to have a fourth surgery on his broken forearm. From the sound of things everything went well, the infection is finally gone, and they were able to get a new plate put in to hold it together.

While the arm has been a serious issue for him it is hardly a career ender. That could very well be his back.

Most football fans are probably not aware of this, but Gronkowski had back issues in college. He had to have surgery his last year at Arizona to deal with a disc issue. Some believe that is why he fell to the second round rather than going earlier in the 2010 draft.

Now it appears that he has been dealing with a back issue since last season that could require surgery. He's had an MRI and is due to see a specialist soon. The hope is that if he does need surgery that his recovery can coincide with the rehab for his arm.

Man--this guys is just 24 and he seems to be falling apart!

A lot of injuries are no-brainers; you know you can come back from them. However, there are two that a player has to be worried about--the neck and back. Mess one of those up and you run a severe risk of long term affects--the kind that can really impact quality of life after football!

As much as New England needs him on the field, they would be smart to make sure that he is 100 percent ready to play before letting him back on again. I'm not just taking about healing, but getting his strength where it needs to be and his conditioning up to game standards.

Otherwise they might see Rob taking a seat at the SportsCenter desk sooner rather than later (much later).