The New England Patriots are dealing with a tough situation after Aaron Hernandez was arrested on Wednesday and now that the team has released him, Bill Belichick has a major offensive problem at the position, as Rob Gronkowski is coming back from surgery, leaving Tim Tebow as a possible solution.
According to ESPN.com, the Patriots decided to release Hernandez after he was arrested and in doing so they now will take on a $7 million cap hit after giving him a lucrative extension. Hernandez was connected to the murder of 27-year=old Odin Lloyd and he could end up facing serious charges, including obstruction of justice in the case. The tight end reportedly destroyed his cell phone and home security system and now he could end up facing more serious charges in court, possibly an accessory charge to the murder.
Sources say that it is going to get worse for Hernandez and that could be one reason why the team decided to release him, despite how important he is to the offense. Tom Brady and Belichick used the tight end duo to help give them an added element on offense and over the course of three years the two combined with 42 wins and 51 touchdowns and now that is over. Gronkowski will return, but since he has had multiple surgeries it could take longer than expected and now Jake Ballard may have to step up to be the starting tight end.
Many have also speculated on how this will affect Tim Tebow, as many have said in the past that a switch to tight end could be a good idea, but now it might come out of necessity, as the team is down an elite tight end. The case has shed light on his Florida teammate and his past of drug tests and gang ties is now more pronounced and is why he slipped in the draft. The tight end lost multiple endorsements already and now he could face a fine or suspension from the NFL in the future as well. Police searched his home and the area around it multiple times and while they have been quiet on their findings, something in the evidence may have spurred the arrest.
