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There was a time, not all that long ago, that Rob Gronkowski potentially being traded from the New England Patriots, was the biggest story in the NFL.
Back in 2018, Gronk was constantly being discussed as a potential piece in a trade with the New England Patriots. He had already won two Super Bowls with New England but things had appeared to sour.
Those rumors boiled over when it came out that Gronk would simply retire from the NFL instead of being traded to the Detroit Lions. This also earned him the ire of Lions fans, a deeply proud fanbase who felt slighted by Rob Gronkowski’s decision to retire in place of moving to Detroit.
Speaking with Peter Schrager of Fox Sports this week, Gronk cleared the air on how he feels about the Detroit Lions and the fanbase:
Rob Gronkowski was almost traded to the Detroit Lions.
He wasn’t having it.
He tells the incredible story — with some bleeps— here, on this week’s episode of “The Season with Peter Schrager”.
@nflnetwork @NFLMedia @gmfb @RobGronkowski pic.twitter.com/Z1DcqPuZhv
— Peter Schrager (@PSchrags) July 26, 2023
Gronk said there was “some disconnect” between the Patriots and him. He called it a little bit of “mayhem.” Rob admitted that he “maybe handled himself a little wrong” in the process and says he might’ve done it differently if we were able to go back in time.
After that, he sets the record clear that he was going to retire no matter what if there was a trade. It had nothing to do with the Detroit Lions, the fanbase, or the city of Detroit. Gronk wanted to only play with Tom Brady and for the New England Patriots at that point. End of story.
Gronk is a fixture on the sports media Twitter these days. He recently ignited a debate about Steph Curry’s golf skills after Curry’s hole-in-one.