Where Tom Brady went, Rob Gronkowski wanted to follow.
Shortly after news of Gronkowski’s trade from the New England Patriots to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers broke Tuesday afternoon, his agent, Drew Rosenhaus, appeared on ESPN’s “SportsCenter” to explain the genesis of his client’s decision.
“I think Rob was really interested in coming back about a month ago,” Rosenhaus said. “Shortly after Tom Brady went to Tampa, Rob and I had a conversation that this would be a situation that would be appealing to him. Obviously, this was a deal that New England had to feel good about and Tampa had to feel good about. This wasn’t just about Rob. All the parties involved had to be in agreement.”
The Patriots, who still owned Gronkowski’s rights despite the tight end’s retirement last offseason, reportedly agreed to trade the tight end and a 2020 seventh-round draft pick to the Bucs for a 2020 fourth-rounder. Had Gronkowski chosen to unretire before being traded, his $10 million salary for the 2020 season would have hit the Patriots’ books, pushing them over the salary cap.
Rosenhaus was sure to mention this during his “SportsCenter” interview.
“Rob is a very classy guy in the way he handled this,” he said. “Rob could have come out of retirement and become reinstated and put the Patriots in a tough situation cap-wise, but he decided not to do that. He decided to be patient and really allow this to work out.
“He loves New England; he loves the Patriots organization, Coach (Bill) Belchick, the Krafts, his teammates that are still there. He had an amazing run in New England. It was just time for him to continue his career with Tom Brady in Florida with Tampa. It was something cool and exciting and challenging for him. He’s well-rested and looking forward to playing with Tom.”
Gronkowski, whose last NFL catch set up Sony Michel’s game-winning touchdown in Super Bowl LIII, joins a stacked Buccaneers offense featuring wide receivers Mike Evans and Chris Godwin, running back Ronald Jones and, for now, fellow tight ends Cameron Brate and O.J. Howard. Tampa Bay reportedly is looking to trade Howard.
