ROB GRONKOWSKI ANNOUNCES RETIREMENT
Four-time Super Bowl champion Rob Gronkowski announced on social media on Tuesday that he was retiring from the NFL. That’s right, we’re saying goodbye to the spikes in the end zone…for the second and what might be the final time.
Gronkowski’s first foray into retirement came before the 2019 season, with the tight end ultimately coming back in 2020 to play with long-time teammate and friend Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. While there still is a possibility that “Gronk” might have a change of heart once more for now, the future Hall of Famer is hanging up his cleats.
The news was broken by The Game Day NFL’s Jordan Schultz after Gronkowski told him that he was retiring and he was “excited to pursue other opportunities.”
Gronkowski then confirmed the news on Instagram saying: “In College, I was asked to write about a dream job opportunity that I wanted to pursue and where the location would be. Every time I had to write about my future, no matter what, I picked being a professional football player. For that assignment though, we had to pick the location. So I wrote that I wanted to play in Tampa for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, for many reasons. The sunny weather being #1.”
“I completely forgot about writing this report until 2 years ago when I had the opportunity to join the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. And let me tell ya, the journey in Tampa over the last two years has blown away what I originally wrote about in college, big time. And for this, I want to thank the whole entire first-class Buccaneers organization for an amazing ride, trusting me to come back to play and build a championship team.”
“I will now be going back into my retirement home, walking away from football again with my head held high knowing I gave it everything I had, good or bad, every time I stepped out on the field. The friendships and relationships I made will last forever, and I appreciate every single one of my teammates and coaches for giving everything they had as well.”
“From retirement, back to football and winning another championship and now back to chilling out, thank you to all,” Gronkowski went on. “Buccaneers fans, the Krewe, without you guys, none of this is possible. All of ya brought it every game, thank you for all you do. Cheers to what’s next, maybe sailing the seas. Arghhhhhh!”
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers took to Twitter to thank the 5-time Pro Bowl tight end with general manager Jason Licht saying: “Rob is a true professional who left it all on the field for us the past two seasons and helped establish a championship culture in our building. He played a crucial part in our Super Bowl LV championship season in 2020 and battled through a number of injuries last year while on the way to one of the most productive receiving yardage seasons in his 11-year career.”
“It is always difficult to see a great player walk away from the game while he is still enjoying that kind of success, but the overwhelming emotions I feel today are gratitude and respect for one of the greatest tight ends who ever played the game. While his on-field accomplishments will surely earn him a golden jacket and a place in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, it is his humble attitude and team-first approach to the game that truly defined his career.”
Gronkowski played with Brady for all 11 of his NFL campaigns, the first nine in New England and the last two in Tampa Bay. Gronk’s retirement after the 2018 season came due to an overall accumulation of injuries but he decided to come back to play when Brady swapped the cold of New England for the warmth of Tampa Bay in 2020. The Buccaneers sent a fourth-round draft pick to the Patriots to gain the 4-time First-Team All-Pro tight end’s rights.
Brady briefly “retired” after the 2021 season but announced that he would come back for the final year of his contract 40 days later, which likely made Gronkowski’s decision more difficult. After contemplating retirement for months since becoming an unrestricted free agent in March, Gronk has officially called it quits with the Bucs and with football.
Long-time friend and teammate, Tom Brady posted about Gronkowski on Instagram: “Teammate, friend, brother, just a few of the words that come to mind when I think of Gronk. Nobody has ever embodied the idea of “leaving it all out on the field” like Rob has throughout his entire career. Every single snap, I knew that no matter how many people you put in front of him, he was going to get to his spot.”
“Even more important is the person he was off the field. Focused when he had to be, and FUN the rest of the time. Having Gronk in your locker room was every NFL player’s dream. I’m proud of all that we have accomplished together, and even more excited for all you have ahead of you. Congrats Gronk, you deserve it.”
Over two seasons with the Buccaneers, Gronkowski hauled in 100 receptions for 1,425 yards and 13 touchdowns in 28 games. He also added another 17 receptions for 226 yards and 3 touchdowns in 6 playoff games, including two touchdowns in Super Bowl LV, helping the Buccaneers to beat the Kansas City Chiefs, 31-9.
Gronk will be eligible for induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2027, with his resume screaming “First-ballot Hall of Famer.”
Gronkowski’s exploits include a total of 719 receptions for 10,675 yards and 107 touchdowns in his career with an incredible 621 receptions, 9,286 yards, and 92 touchdowns of that total coming in the regular season. Only former Chiefs tight end Tony Gonzalez, Cowboys’ Jason Witten, Chargers’ Antonio Gates, and Broncos’ Shannon Sharpe have more receiving yards by a tight end in the regular season in league history.
While Gronk was still a regular-season phenomenon, his best work came in the postseason where he posted 98 catches for 1,389 yards and 15 touchdowns in 22 playoff games en route to winning 4 Super Bowl rings. Gronk never played an NFL season that didn’t end with his team getting to the playoffs. His 15 postseason touchdown receptions trail only Jerry Rice’s 22 in the league’s all-time records.
The Bucs lost Pro Bowl left guard Ali Marpet to retirement in February and now lose another integral part of their offense over the past two years. Gronk’s absence means that Brady and the Buccaneers will have to chase their championship aspirations without the “Gronko-mole” for their chips as other pieces step up to the plate. As it stands, Robert James Gronkowski is moving on to pursue other passions, though a return to football at some point isn’t ever fully off the table when it comes to former Patriots players.
-Maher Abucheri
Twitter: @pabloikonyero
Photo: All-Pro Reels. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license.