Rob Gronkowski Explains Mindset As Bucs Look To Repeat As Super Bowl Champions

After having his well-deserved fun, Rob Gronkowski is ready to work again.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers tight end explained to the media Wednesday how he mentally is approaching the 2021 NFL season. The Buccaneers won Super Bowl LV in February and have basked in the glory ever since. But Gronkowski believes they must move on from that triumph quickly in order to defend their championship.

“I mean coming off a championship season, that’s huge,” Gronkowski told reporters, per the Buccaneers. “It’s definitely a different vibe because you have to leave that in the past. You’ve got to learn how to leave that in the past. Yes, it was great to celebrate and all — we had our time to celebrate, but that’s in the past — it’s a whole new season now. So, you’ve got to find ways to just put it in the back our your mind to just throw it back there.

“This is a whole new season — we have a target on our back. We’ve got to find ways to get better, find ways to improve, I’ve got to find ways to go out there and be consistent on a daily basis. You’ve just got to keep finding ways to step up your game because you have a target on your back as a whole and you’ve just got to keep improving. You can’t have any setbacks thinking, ‘Great, that’s all in the past.”

Gronkowski won Super Bowls with the New England Patriots in the 2014, 2016 and 2018 seasons. However, the Pats failed to repeat as Super Bowl champions on all three occasions, and those setbacks add some weight to Gronkowski’s insight into what the Bucs must do in order to win Super Bowl LVI.

Gronkowski returned to the NFL in 2020, having spent one year in retirement. Now 32, Gronk says he’s in a good place physically as he prepares for his 11th NFL campaign.

“Yeah, it feels good, it feels good to have that nice little offseason to heal up, to work on things that you need to work on,” he said. “But (I) feel good, I had a solid three days to practice — just going out there like it was any other time. Just running around, catching balls, blocking and all that. But (I) feel good overall and ready to roll man.”

Now that the party is over, and training camp is underway,