Rob Gronkowski, battered and broken after nine seasons in the National Football League, is retiring. We will not see another man-child like Gronk for a long time.
One of the best tight ends in football history, Gronk, only 29, went out the way he played the game. His way. No press conference. No teary farewell from the 50-yard line at Gillette Stadium. He announced his news via Instagram on Sunday during the heat of March Madness and the dramatic fallout of the Mueller Report.
Pure Gronk!
How do we love Gronk? Let me count the ways.
He was about as automatic a catch as possible in the NFL. Over the middle, in the flat, down either sideline, deep, it didn’t matter. When Tom Brady needed a completion, he trusted Gronk. Remember those two sideline grabs that helped set up Sony Michel’s game-deciding 2-yard touchdown plunge in the fourth quarter of Super Bowl LIII last February?
Pure Gronk!
Remember those exuberant spikes in the end zone after a touchdown catch?
Pure Gronk!
Remember those bone-crushing blocks when the Patriots needed rushing yards?
Pure Gronk!
Remember his goofy grin and his unabashed Animal House approach to life? His “Gronk Party Ship” cruise to the Bahamas in 2016?
Pure Gronk!
Remember how he came back from ankle, arm, back, knee and hamstring injuries to give us all he had during his nine seasons?
Pure Gronk!
Rob Gronkowski had it all. Size. Speed. Great hands. He caught 521 passes for 7,861 yards and 79 touchdowns, the last stat a Patriots record. He was a five-time Pro Bowler and four-time first-team All-Pro. He helped the Pats to five Super Bowls and three titles, although he missed the amazing comeback over the Falcons in Super Bowl LI because he had had back surgery.
Gronk thanked everyone for “accepting who I am and the dedication I have put into my work to be the best player I could be.” Accepting Gronk was easy because he was the best. We should thank him for the gifts he gave us.
Gronk did not say what’s next, but the New York Times cited an NFL Network report that he agreed to a film or television deal before the Super Bowl. If so, we know what to expect.
Pure Gronk!
