WWE Says Rob Gronkowski Must Defend 24/7 Championship ‘at All Times’ After Joining Buccaneers

Rob Gronkowski is returning to football this fall, after being traded to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. But while NFL fans were surprised to hear the news, Gronk being traded also made an impact on WWE. The three-time Super Bowl champion is currently the WWE 24/7 Champion, which he won at WrestleMania earlier this month. When WWE heard the news, it released a statement that said he may have to defend his title while playing in an NFL game this year.

“Congratulations to Rob Gronkowski, the current WWE 24/7 Champion, on his return to football,” WWE wrote on Twitter. “Per the rules of the 24/7 title, Gronk must defend his championship at all times in any location. He could be celebrating a touchdown pass from #TomBrady…anytime, anywhere.” Gronkowski was at WrestleMania because he was the host. Once he won the title, Gronkowski left the building and hasn’t appeared on WWE TV since.

Last month, it was reported that Gronkowski signed a contract with WWE. The details of the contract are unknown, but it looks like he won’t be on Raw or SmackDown on a regular basis. That said, Gronkowski had no intention of being a full-time wrestler.

“With wrestling, I don’t feel like I would be a full-time wrestler, but there is one thing I’m down for,” Gronkowski said back in August, per ESPN. “And that’s to do one crazy match. Practice it for a little bit, go out there — like in a Royal Rumble — go out there, I got my friend in WWE [Rawley], practice it and do a full-on WWE match. I’m not saying when, maybe five years. I got the rest of my life to do that. I’ve always dreamed about doing that, just one time, going in there and going full-out. That may be a possibility, one time, down the road.”

Right now, Gronk’s focus is getting back into NFL shape since he’s been out of action for one year. Gronk has nothing to prove because’s he has done it all, but he wants to play with Tom Brady again, who signed a two-year contract with the Bucs last month. The last time Brady and Gronk were on the field together was in February 2019 when the New England Patriots defeated the Los Angeles Rams in the Super Bowl. Both players would love to do the same thing when the Super Bowl comes to Tampa at the end of the 2020 season.