Harjas Badyal
The Gronk party bus has made its last stop in the NFL.
New England Patriots Rob Gronkowski is calling it a career at the age of 29 after only nine seasons in the NFL.
Opposing players will not miss him on the field, but fans will miss his fun-loving party spirit around the year.
James McBride, a New England Patriots beat reporter said his retirement had been a real possibility for some time now.
“I think because Rob’s retirement was a real possibility, the organization has been planning for it for a while. Gronkowski has been hinting at retirement ever since the Patriots lost Super Bowl LII to the Eagles. So, while I think the timing of the announcement may be a bit of a surprise, I don’t think anyone in the organization or the fan base, in general, is surprised.”
Although he is leaving the game considerably earlier than most thought, Gronkowski has already solidified himself as a future Hall of Famer one of the greatest tight ends in history.
“He is the best all-around tight end I’ve seen. He was equally good at receiving as he was at run blocking, and was a force in just about every game he played,” said Matt Pepin a sports editor for the Boston Globe.
Gronkowski in the record books.
His name is all over the record books alongside other HOF tight-end like Tony Gonzalez and Shannon Sharpe, and has been arguably the most dominant player in this decade.
Here is a list of records under his name.
- Most receptions by a tight end in Super Bowl history (23)
- Most receiving yards by a tight end in Super Bowl history (297)
- Most career postseason receiving yards by a tight end (1,163)
- Most receiving touchdowns by a tight end in a single season (17)
- Most touchdowns by a tight end in a single season (18)
- Most career postseason touchdowns by a tight end (12)
- Most seasons with 10+ touchdowns by a tight end (5)
- Most consecutive seasons with 10+ touchdowns by a tight end (3)
- Youngest player with 3 touchdown receptions in a game (21 years, 184 days)
- Youngest player with 3 touchdown receptions in a playoff game (22 years, 275 days)
- Only tight end to have three seasons with 10+ touchdowns and 1,000+ yards
- Only tight end to lead the league in receiving touchdowns (2011)
- Only tight end with 1,000+ career postseason receiving yards
(credit:SportsIllustrated)
Big player, bigger personality.
The pioneer of the “Gronk Spike” was a dominant force on the field, but off the field he was as big a star.
It was reported by Michael Giardi of NFL Network that Gronkowski had already agreed to a deal with a TV company before this year’s Super Bowl.
He danced his way to three Super Bowl championships.
Preparing for the Super Bowl
.@RobGronkowski + #SBOpeningNight = classic Gronk dance moves pic.twitter.com/mqohPLXxP3
— New England Patriots (@Patriots) January 29, 2019
Or celebrating the Super Bowl
Wouldn’t be complete without dance moves from Gronk… pic.twitter.com/fvBIjcn9WW
— New England Patriots (@Patriots) February 4, 2015
He was always party ready
Gronk’s last move is definitely touchdown dance material 😂 pic.twitter.com/VdQbhaqDHt
— The Checkdown (@thecheckdown) December 27, 2018
Gronk could already have plans for retirement because he made an appearance in the WWE during WrestleMania in 2017.
“While I think he’d be a WWE superstar, I don’t think he go in that direction for health reasons,” said McBride.