Gronkowski mulling retirement

[Hammock Parties]

If Gronk retires...that offense is done.

Will Rob Gronkowski retire? Why the Patriots star's decision isn't easy

http://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/2...-decision-easy

When asked whether he had just played his last game, Gronkowski deferred.

"Tonight's about celebrating with our teammates," he said. "That decision will be made in a week or two."

Someone mentioned a hit he took during the game -- in the second quarter, he collided with a pair of Rams defenders after a short catch -- and he replied quickly, "Yeah, my quad. It hurts a lot. I can barely walk right now." He added, his delivery more deadpan than joyful: "But it's all good, because we're Super Bowl champs."

After the hit, Gronkowski, who played every snap, staggered off the field. Whenever he suffers a blow -- he has endured more than most players, in part because his gigantic frame makes it difficult for defenders to tackle him any other way -- he limps like a cinematic monster hobbled by arrows. The effect is similarly heartbreaking. Gronkowski had surgery on his spine before entering the league (explaining why the Patriots were able to snag him in the second round), and he has experienced a litany of painful injuries and operations over the years. This season, he missed three regular-season games, reportedly because he was suffering from Achilles tendinitis and a bulging disc in his back.

Earlier in the week, he acknowledged how difficult it has been for him to come back at times.

"Try to imagine getting hit all the time, and trying to be where you want every day in life," he said. "It's tough. It's difficult. To take hits to the thigh, to take hits to your head, abusing your body ... isn't what the brain wants."

After his news conference at the Super Bowl, Gronkowski trudged to the locker room, where he started peeling his pads off. As a staffer pulled his nametag off his locker (empty, save for a roll of tube socks and a half-eaten sandwich), Tom Brady's personal trainer, Alex Guerrero, walked over and gently unwrapped the tape on his arm. While his teammates sprayed champagne and danced on one side of the room, Gronkowski was quiet -- solemn, almost. A reporter asked him where he was partying, and he muttered in response: "We'll see, we'll see."

When he had changed into a towel, the large scar on his shoulder shiny with sweat, it was evident that his right thigh was absurdly swollen, to the point where it looked bloated. His movements were halting. I asked him if he was looking forward to the offseason -- potentially, the rest of his life -- and he smiled softly, "I'm super excited to just chill."

[Amnorix]

Originally Posted by ThyKingdomCome15

To be honest I was surprised Gronk retired and never believed he was done for good. Training camp, preseason, and about all of regular season means next to nothing to him. If he chooses to remain retired then I'll be shocked. I think he'll come back.

Just no.

https://www.si.com/nfl/2019/02/03/ro...-list-patriots


College - University of Arizona
2009

• Back Vertebral Disc Hernia, Aug. 15 (Forced Gronkowksi to miss the entire 2009 season.)

NFL - New England Patriots
2012

• High ankle sprain, Jan. 28 (Suffered during AFC Championship, but played in Super Bowl. Later underwent arthroscopic surgery in February.)

• Inguinal hip pull, Sept. 28

• Arm forearm fracture, Nov. 18 (Missed five games.)

2013

• Arm forearm fracture, Jan. 13 (Re-fractured arm, necessitating three more surgeries.)

• Back vertebral fracture, May 17 (Underwent surgery while also recovering from broken arm; didn't play until Week 7 the next season.)

• Concussion - Grade 1, Dec. 8

• Torn ACL - Grade 3, Dec. 8

• Torn MCL - Grade 3, Dec. 8 (Gronkowski suffered a concussion, a torn ACL and a torn MCL on the same play.)

2015

• Knee Strain - Grade 1, Nov. 29 (Missed one game.)

2016

• Hamstring Pull - Grade 1, Aug. 15 (Missed entire preseason and first two regular-season contests.)

• Chest Lung Bruise, Nov. 13

• Back Vertebral Disc Hernia, Nov. 27 (Missed final five regular-season games, as well playoffs. Had surgery in December.)

2017

• Leg Thigh Bruise, Oct. 1 (Missed one game.)

2018

• Concussion - Grade 1, Jan. 21

• Back/Ankle - (Missed three games)


Plus he had a very serious thigh bruise which he said kept him up crying in pain after the Super Bowl win. Imagine instead of being able to party and celebrate, you're basically just in massive pain due to a hard tackle. That sucks....

[ThyKingdomCome15]

Originally Posted by Amnorix

Just no.

https://www.si.com/nfl/2019/02/03/ro...-list-patriots


College - University of Arizona
2009

• Back Vertebral Disc Hernia, Aug. 15 (Forced Gronkowksi to miss the entire 2009 season.)

NFL - New England Patriots
2012

• High ankle sprain, Jan. 28 (Suffered during AFC Championship, but played in Super Bowl. Later underwent arthroscopic surgery in February.)

• Inguinal hip pull, Sept. 28

• Arm forearm fracture, Nov. 18 (Missed five games.)

2013

• Arm forearm fracture, Jan. 13 (Re-fractured arm, necessitating three more surgeries.)

• Back vertebral fracture, May 17 (Underwent surgery while also recovering from broken arm; didn't play until Week 7 the next season.)

• Concussion - Grade 1, Dec. 8

• Torn ACL - Grade 3, Dec. 8

• Torn MCL - Grade 3, Dec. 8 (Gronkowski suffered a concussion, a torn ACL and a torn MCL on the same play.)

2015

• Knee Strain - Grade 1, Nov. 29 (Missed one game.)

2016

• Hamstring Pull - Grade 1, Aug. 15 (Missed entire preseason and first two regular-season contests.)

• Chest Lung Bruise, Nov. 13

• Back Vertebral Disc Hernia, Nov. 27 (Missed final five regular-season games, as well playoffs. Had surgery in December.)

2017

• Leg Thigh Bruise, Oct. 1 (Missed one game.)

2018

• Concussion - Grade 1, Jan. 21

• Back/Ankle - (Missed three games)


Plus he had a very serious thigh bruise which he said kept him up crying in pain after the Super Bowl win. Imagine instead of being able to party and celebrate, you're basically just in massive pain due to a hard tackle. That sucks....

Yeah, that is a compelling case for him to stay retired. Robert Kraft and Brady both told him they want him back. That deadline for him to commit or stay home is fast approaching.

(I don't think that weight loss would be good for him taking hits either.)

[FAX]

He's only had 2 concussions?

That's surprising. Very surprising.

FAX

[TwistedChief]

Why in the world would you come back? You went out on top as much as is humanly possible. You complained about your body breaking down. You have other irons in the fire career-wise. And I'm sure you see that the Patriots offense has problems even if you do happen to return.

Doesn't sound that enticing. It's not like he's got Mahomes throwing to him and Tyreek Hill split out opposite him.

[PAChiefsGuy]

Is he even in shape to come back? Last pic I saw of him it looked like he lost 20-30 lbs...

[CasselGotPeedOn]

Originally Posted by TwistedChief

Why in the world would you come back? You went out on top as much as is humanly possible. You complained about your body breaking down. You have other irons in the fire career-wise. And I'm sure you see that the Patriots offense has problems even if you do happen to return.

Doesn't sound that enticing. It's not like he's got Mahomes throwing to him and Tyreek Hill split out opposite him.

Belichick probably threatened to have Gronk's family hurt if he didn't come back and help him win another ring.

[TwistedChief]

Originally Posted by PAChiefsGuy

Is he even in shape to come back? Last pic I saw of him it looked like he lost 20-30 lbs...

There's no way he's coming back. No chance.

[FAX]

Originally Posted by CasselGotPeedOn

Belichick probably threatened to have Gronk's family hurt if he didn't come back and help him win another ring.

I certainly wouldn't put it past him, but Belichick convincing Gronk to retake the field is akin to aiding and abetting assault.

So yes. He probably will do exactly that.

FAX

[Rain Man]

Originally Posted by TwistedChief

Why in the world would you come back? You went out on top as much as is humanly possible. You complained about your body breaking down. You have other irons in the fire career-wise. And I'm sure you see that the Patriots offense has problems even if you do happen to return.

Doesn't sound that enticing. It's not like he's got Mahomes throwing to him and Tyreek Hill split out opposite him.

I bet "patriots fans" don't know who he is now.

[Megatron96]

He's not coming back. Not this season anyway. He couldn't get into football shape in time at this point.

[Amnorix]

Originally Posted by FAX

He's only had 2 concussions?

That's surprising. Very surprising.

FAX

Confirmed/reported concussions. I suspect the real number is higher, as is generally true for most skill position players, LBs and DBs.

[Amnorix]

Originally Posted by TwistedChief

Why in the world would you come back? You went out on top as much as is humanly possible. You complained about your body breaking down. You have other irons in the fire career-wise. And I'm sure you see that the Patriots offense has problems even if you do happen to return.

Doesn't sound that enticing. It's not like he's got Mahomes throwing to him and Tyreek Hill split out opposite him.

Pats literally won the SB last year but you're suggesting he'd be more likely to "unretire" if it were the Chiefs instead of the Patriots he's going back to.

[Amnorix]

Originally Posted by PAChiefsGuy

Is he even in shape to come back? Last pic I saw of him it looked like he lost 20-30 lbs...

Yeah, he's definitely dropped some weight. Alot less bulky now.

Just another brick in the obvious wall of "not coming back."

[pugsnotdrugs19]

He ain’t coming back. Not this year at least. He’s down a solid 15-20 lbs of muscle.

[luv]

https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/...eturn-not-2019

Rob Gronkowski won't say 'never' on return, but not in 2019

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- Retired New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski hasn't ruled out a return to football in the future, but he has no plans to do so in 2019.

"I wouldn't say 'never coming back,'" Gronkowski told ESPN on Tuesday. "I'm 30 years old. I'm young. I still stay fit, still watch the game whenever I can, still enjoy it. I'm feeling good, but you know, one year off could possibly be the case. Or maybe two years off, man.

"It's always an option in the back of my head. It's not like I'm not staying in shape and not doing anything. I'm never stressed over it."

Gronkowski's remarks Tuesday morning came after he announced business-based plans to host a Super Bowl party in South Florida, which potentially spiked hopes of Patriots fans that he would return to play for the team this year. If Gronkowski had planned to return this season, he would have to do so by Nov. 30, per NFL rules.

Gronkowski, who retired in March, playfully asked, "What's better, me playing in the game or me hitting this party?"

The 9-1 Patriots could use Gronkowski, as quarterback Tom Brady expressed his frustration with the offense after Sunday's 17-10 victory over the Philadelphia Eagles. Gronkowski, who says he is having fun in retirement, has been watching his former team closely.

"The defense is just tremendous, the way they're coming together with the veteran leadership they have there, and the skill set they have. With the offense, they're finding ways to make it work like they've always done, putting guys in the right situation to make plays. But man, they're missing some guy who is 6-6, 260 [pounds]. They're missing that guy, for sure," Gronkowski said with a laugh, referencing himself.

Gronkowski, who once said he never spent a dollar of his football paycheck and instead lived off his endorsements, has capitalized on speculation about his playing future.

He had touted a big announcement Tuesday morning, which turned out to be a Super Bowl party called "Gronk Beach." As part of the announcement, Gronkowski produced a video that featured two versions of himself -- one urging him to return to football, the other promoting the party.

In some ways, the video captured where he is at this point in his life.

"It's definitely a different chapter, doing a lot of different things, just finding what I really like I do, and finding out things sometimes I don't like to do," he said. "It's definitely interesting because I've played football my whole life.

"I have to keep things going, that sports competitiveness going. I love to play backyard games, pickup games, because I still have that competition in me. That's how I've been my whole life, playing sports. Also with the fun aspect, too. Even since I was a little kid -- we always hustled, always played sports, but then we would always have a party after, go enjoy ourselves, because that's what life is all about."

Gronkowski, who said his best experience at a Super Bowl party came after the Patriots beat the Seattle Seahawks on Feb. 1, 2015, still feels support from Patriots fans.

"Many of them say they want to see me back on the field, but I take it more deeply to the heart when they tell me they appreciate the nine years with the team and they just want to see me happy and healthy," he said.