WWE is reportedly interested in signing Rob Gronkowski if he’s willing to end his professional football career. The New England Patriots tight end is coming off a loss in Super Bowl 52 to the Philadelphia Eagles, and there’s speculation that Gronk might actually be considering retirement.
A concussion was the latest injury that hampered Gronkowski in the days leading up to the Super Bowl, and Mike Florio at Pro Football Talk reported that there was some talk that Gronkowski might be considering a life after football.
Gronkowski has appeared at WWE events before, including earlier this month when he was dissed by Jinder Mahal. He also helped friend Mojo Rawley during a match at WrestleMania last April.
According to Dave Meltzer in his Wrestling Observer newsletter, WWE might be interested in signing Gronk to a deal similar to one that Ronda Rousey got in recent months.
According to Alex Marvez, Gronkowski has saved his money, as he claimed in 2015 that hehadn’t spent a dime of his NFL salary and has been living off only his endorsement money, and there is interest in him in Hollywood. He can also retire right now with a secure spot in the Hall of Fame looming. For what it’s worth,the Patriots are proceeding right now as if there is nothing to any of this.
This comes at the same time that reports from wrestling indicate WWE is willing to offer a similar style deal to Gronkowski that they offered to Ronda Rousey. Given that would be making far less money than he would make in football, it’s hard to say, but he’s been hurt a lot in football and while wrestling full-time is very hard on the body as well, a part-time deal isn’t so bad. Gronkowski obviously likes wrestling, as he’s been at many WWE events when Rawley was there, including in developmental, and of course, was already part of one WrestleMania, which led to Rawley winning the Andre the Giant Battle Royal, and then they did nothing with him afterwards, so it was more a way to get Gronkowski and ESPN and mainstream sports coverage than to get one of their guys over to star level.
Gronkowski has had a ton of injuries in his relatively short career considering the superstar level he plays at, but he’s said he knows his body better now than he did as a rookie. That might mean he knows when it’s time to call it a career, too.
But whether Gronkowski is willing to retire right away and step into the ring is another story. He’s one of the most productive tight ends of all-time in his eight-year career, and he’s just 28. And wrestling is certainly not without its own injuries and wear and tear on the body. There’s a lot to consider for Gronkowski here, but if the reported interest is real, it could be an interesting decision for Gronkowski to make this offseason.
