The trade rumors involving Rob Gronkowski that captivated social media last Friday were nothing but “a bunch of hogwash,” according to New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft.
Speaking Tuesday at the Myra Kraft Community MVP event, Kraft strongly denied a report that he shut down a trade that would have sent the Patriots’ All-Pro tight end to either the San Francisco 49ers or Tennessee Titans.
“I guess when your team is good, people are looking for things,” he said. “I’ll just tell you it’s a bunch of hogwash that I vetoed some trade that was never in the works. It’s just completely made up. And I think we have to be careful in society today that people just can’t come out and say things. This bit about us trading Gronk to the 49ers or Tennessee, there’s no basis to it, and it gets a life of its own.
“I just want to go on record at today’s event to make sure that you all understand that there’s no truth to that. People shouldn’t be able to do that.”
Former Boston Herald reporter Adam Kurkjian, who reported that Kraft had nixed a Gronkowski trade after quarterback Tom Brady threatened to retire, stood by his story in multiple radio interviews Monday morning, saying he trusts his sources.
Kraft’s statement came after Patriots PR chief Stacey James issued a similarly vehement denial, telling Kurkjian: “I would say with the utmost confidence that none of that is true. None of it.”
Gronkowski also addressed the rumors over the weekend, dismissing them as “fake news.”
