Gronkowski listed as questionable

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INDIANAPOLIS -- New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski, who is nursing a high ankle sprain, practiced for the second straight day Friday and is officially listed as questionable for Sunday's Super Bowl XLVI against the New York Giants.

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AP Photo/Mark HumphreyRob Gronkowski (left) moved without a limp at Friday's Patriots walkthrough.

Gronkowski was again limited at the practice session, which was an hour-long walkthrough. Gronkowski moved without a limp when the Patriots executed their offensive plays, though the pace was at no more than a trot.

The 22-year-old tight end was dressed in gray sweatpants, gray sneakers and a dark blue T-shirt that read "Yo Soy Fiesta" -- a Spanish phrase meaning "I am party" -- which he recently coined and has gone viral.

"He practiced yesterday. He didn't do anything today," Patriots coach Bill Belichick said. "We'll see where he's at on Sunday, but hopefully (he'll play). I saw no setbacks. He's still making progress."

On Saturday, Gronkowski showed no trace of a limp for the 75 minutes he was on the field posing first for team photos and then with assorted waves of teammates' family members. Gronkowski walked briskly from the field and up the tunnel headed for the buses outside.

"I think he's doing better," Belichick said before the team went on the field to begin the session. "I think he's doing a little better each day. We'll just have to see where things (are) and get through tomorrow."

Multiple sources told ESPN NFL Insider Adam Schefter on Thursday that Gronkowski would play Sunday barring any setbacks.

Earlier in the day, Belichick would not say exactly what Gronkowski did at Thursday's practice session when pressed by a reporter.

"He practiced on a limited basis and did some of the things that we did in practice," Belichick said. There was a long pause before he continued, joking, "Was that the elaboration you were looking for?"

Belichick pronounced his team "ready to go" after Friday's session, their final practice before the Super Bowl. The Patriots will not practice Saturday but will have meetings in their hotel and gather for a team photo at Lucas Oil Stadium.

"We've worked hard this week Monday, Wednesday and Thursday in practice, and we had good practices back (in Foxborough, Mass.) last week," Belichick said. "We went through some mental review things out there (Friday)."

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As part of Friday's practice, Belichick took the field with his team during special teams work. He served as an offensive lineman on punts, trying to draw the punt coverage team offsides, and along with special teams coach Scott O'Brien worked as a defensive lineman when Stephen Gostkowski was kicking field goals.

"We were just going through the looks," said Belichick, who was a special teams coach with the Lions, Broncos and Giants during the 1970s and '80s. "We have key guys based on where they line up. We just try to show them that as a final reminder."

Gronkowski said Thursday that the final decision on whether he plays in Super Bowl XLVI will come as a result of collaboration with the team's athletic training staff.

"It's my body and I know how I feel the best," Gronkowski said. "I just communicate with the trainers on how I feel, what they think, and we just put all our knowledge together so we can get the best possible situation."

Gronkowski added that he wouldn't play if he believed it wasn't the right thing to do.

"I will make the final call. I listen to the trainer's advice, but it's how I feel," he said. "I'm just trying to get better. The trainer has helped me to get to a place where I need to be."

Mike Reiss covers the Patriots for ESPNBoston.com.

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Mike Reiss

Patriots reporter, ESPNBoston.com

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• Covered Patriots since 1997
• Blogging on Pats since 2004
• Joined ESPNBoston.com in 2009