Rob Gronkowski announced his second NFL retirement on Tuesday, June 21. Fans of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers will be hoping that this premier player ends his newest retirement as quickly as his fellow future Hall of Fame quarterback Tom Brady did earlier this offseason.
Brady – who had his meme game going strong on Twitter soon after the announcement was made – has already tempted Gronk out of retirement once before. It was Brady who made the call to his all-time favorite pass catcher after arriving in Tamp Bay, pulling Gronkowski back to the NFL after the pair had dominated the AFC in New England.
If this is a true retirement, however, what is the legacy of this premier player?
Simply put, he is one of the greatest ever players at his position in NFL history.
The 33-year-old has spent his career as a walking matchup problem. At 6-foot-6 and 265 pounds, Gronkowski is perhaps the greatest red zone threat to ever play in the NFL. This would seem to track given that he has the most touchdowns of anyone since 2020 and that his 92 receiving touchdowns are the third most in history by a tight end.
To back up the ‘best ever’ conversation, Gronk scored those 92 touchdowns in far fewer games than the two tight ends ahead of him on the list. Tony Gonzalez had 111 touchdowns in 270 games, Antonio Gates – the all-time leader at the position – finished with 116 touchdowns in 236 games. Gronk has taken just 143 contests to reach his mark of 92 (93 if you count his rushing TD in 2011).
Continuing at that pace, Gronk would have had 150+ touchdowns if he had played as many games as Gates.
It is hard to separate Gronkowski from Brady. The duo trail only Peyton Manning to Marvin Harrison when it comes to the most touchdown passes thrown by a quarterback to a single receiver (or in this case tight end). It is not even like the duo has been slowing down in recent years as they combined for 13 touchdowns in their two seasons in Tampa Bay. That is just one less touchdown than Gronkowski scored in his last three seasons in New England.
Gronkowski’s greatest year was his second in the league in 2011. He was basically unplayable for most of the season as he was in his athletic pomp before little injuries and the wear and tear of NFL life started to wear him down. That season – along with the already mentioned rushing touchdown on the only carry of his entire career – Gronkowski caught 17 touchdowns and had over 1,300 yards receiving. It is the greatest single season by a tight end in the history of the NFL.
The odds of a Gronk return depend entirely on how the Bucs start out in 2022. Missing training camp means nothing to a veteran who has seen it all before and honestly, works better as Gronk is the type of player to keep himself in good shape regardless. If the Bucs start 3-7 or 4-6, don’t expect to see him. If, however, they are at 7-3 or so and look set for another deep playoff run then don’t be shocked in the slightest to see him back at Ray Jay as we hit November.