Tom Brady Sends Emotional Message to Rob Gronkowski Following Retirement Announcement
Rob Gronkowski has announced his retirement from the NFL, and Tom Brady has a message for him. On Instagram, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback reacted to his favorite tight end deciding to call it a career. This comes after Brady retired for a little over a month before returning to the play for the Buccaneers for at least one more season.
"Teammate, friend, brother, just a few of the words that come to mind when I think of [Gronkowski], Brady wrote in the Instagram post. "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 players dream. I'm proud of all that we've accomplished together, and even more excited for all you have ahead of you."
Gronkowski and Brady have played together since the 2010 season when Gronkowski was selected in the second round of the draft by the New England Patriots. From 2010-2018, Gronkowski and Brady made a strong duo as the team helped the Patriots win three Super Bowls. After the Patriots won the Super Bowl during the 2018 season, Gronkowski announced his retirement and didn't play in 2019. But when Brady signed with the Buccaneers in 2020 he got Gronkowski to come out of retirement and play in Tampa where he and Brady won a Super Bowl during the 2020 season.
"I want to thank the whole entire first class Buccaneers organization for an amazing ride, trusting me to come back to play and help 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," Gronkowski said in his statement. In Brady's career, he has thrown 90 touchdown passes to Gronkowski, which is more than any other pass catcher Brady has thrown to in his career.