Rob Gronkowski, who spent the entirety of his 11-year NFL career with Tom Brady at quarterback, shared his reaction to Wednesday's news that the 45-year-old will officially retire after an illustrious 23 seasons.
To begin his NFL career, Gronkowski quickly blossomed into one of Brady's premier targets with the New England Patriots, where the two spent nine seasons together and hoisted three Super Bowl titles. Then, when Gronkowski announced his initial retirement -- which lasted one season (2019) -- the tight end made an unexpected return to rejoin Brady with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for yet another Super Bowl-winning season in 2020.
Following his two-year stop in Tampa Bay, Gronkowski retired again in 2021. And after Brady announced the end of his football journey through a video on social media, the former Pro Bowler sent a both funny and sincere message.
"Tommy, since I already wrote you a long retirement message last year, this time I shall say, welcome to the 2x retired club," Gronkowski tweeted. "You're a legend and you always will be, my friend."
The dynamic duo made five total Super Bowl appearances alongside each other and won four. Throughout his career, Gronkowski totaled 620 catches, 9,275 yards and 93 touchdowns in 141 games with Brady.
Initially, Gronkowski envisioned a return for a 24th season for Brady when the FOX Sports analyst shared his prediction in January.
"He's going to be ready to go next year," Gronkowski said. "But let me tell you, it's going to be whatever situation intrigues him the most. Whatever opportunity makes him the most excited to play the game of football, that's where he will be next year."
