Rob Gronkowski’s retirement — and foray into professional wrestling and reality television — is over. At least for now.
The All Pro tight end will join Tom Brady in Tampa Bay after the Bucs and Patriots agreed to the terms of a trade on Tuesday. The deal was first reported by NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport. Gronkowski told Jay Glazer that he has already passed his physical.
As only @RobGronkowski can do just got voice message from him with simply and Gronkly said, “I’m baaaaaackkkkkk!” He’s stoked. All moved very quickly @NFLonFOX
— Jay Glazer (@JayGlazer) April 21, 2020
The deal: Per Rapoport, the Bucs will send the Patriots a fourth-round pick in exchange for Gronkowski and a seventh-round pick. The Bucs will pick up the final year on Gronkowski’s contract, which comes with a base salary of $9 million. Gronkowski will cost $10 million toward the Bucs’ salary cap in 2020.
The #Bucs have agreed to terms on a trade: Tampa gets Rob Gronkowski and a 7th rounder in exchange for a 4th rounder, sources say.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) April 21, 2020
Why they made the move: If Gronkowski, arguably the greatest tight end of all time and a lock to eventually make the Pro Football Hall of Fame, wants to play again, and, more specifically, wants to play with Tom Brady again, the Bucs had to find a way to make it happen. Even if Gronkowski isn’t the same player he was in his prime, he will immediately be an asset to the Bucs’ offense. His rapport and trust with Brady is unmatched, and it cannot be understated how important it will be for Brady to have Gronkowski in meeting rooms (even virtual ones), on the practice field and in the huddle as he and the Bucs try to create a new offense. The Patriots could have played hard ball with the Bucs or refused to relinquish Gronkowski’s rights. Instead, they decided to let him go, and collect a mid-round pick for a guy they thought was retired.
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The biggest question now is how much does Gronkowski have left, and what sort of player will he be after a year away from football? Gronkowski lost a significant amount of weight during his brief retirement, and still looked quite slender in social media posts shared in recent days. Surely the weight loss has helped his body feel better after years of challenging football injuries, most notably injuries to his back. How much bulk will he need to regain to be the physical presence we are used to? Can he still dominate if he doesn’t weigh 265 (or more) pounds?
Trade grade for the Bucs: A. We won’t know for a while how 2020 post-retirement Gronkowski compares to the player we remember from New England, but it’s a no-brainer for the Bucs to want to find out. The team has seemed disillusioned with O.J. Howard for a while, and Gronkowski, even at age 31 this season (he’ll celebrate his birthday next month), seems to be a pretty clear upgrade. If the plan is to make Tom Brady happy, consider this a big win.
Trade grade for the Patriots: A. No one loves mid-round picks more than Bill Belichick, and while at his prime the Patriots would have been able to get at least a first in exchange for Gronkowski, at this point, a fourth-rounder for a guy who was never going to play for them again is almost like stealing. Watch Belichick use this pick to move up and make a splash in the draft this weekend.
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