NFL icon Rob Gronkowski has revealed that his career could have gone in a completely different direction if not for a late draft trade.
Gronkowki, 35, won four Super Bowls in a career that saw him strike up a unbeatable partnership with Tom Brady and put himself in the conversation for the title of greatest tight end of all time.
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Gronk was drafted by Bill Belicheck’s New England Patriots as the 42nd overall pick in the 2010 NFL Draft – going on to spend eight years with the Patriots and winning three of his four Super Bowls with the franchise.
But that almost didn’t happen, after Gronkowksi revealed that the Baltimore Ravens were actually planning to take him as the 25th overall pick, until a last minute trade stopped the move.
Speaking on his Dudes on Dudes podcast, he said: “The Baltimore Ravens were gonna pick me, I think it was around the 25th pick that they had in the draft.
“And I’m not 100 per cent accurate, but I’ve heard through the grapevine that they were going to grab me with the 25th pick.
“But then Denver [Broncos] and Josh McDaniels [Broncos head coach at the time] came scooping in and traded with the Baltimore Ravens at the 25th pick, which put the Ravens at the 43rd pick.
“So I just got booted out of the first round. [The Ravens] felt like ‘Hey, we were the only ones gonna draft him in the first round, we could possibly get him in the second.’
“And the Patriots got a sniff of it and they traded up one spot before the Baltimore Ravens at No. 42 where I got drafted.”
Had Gronkowski been taken by the Ravens then we would have never been able to enjoy one of the greatest partnerships in NFL history.
‘That’s what makes him so great’
New England Patriots legend Rob Gronkowski says Tom Brady’s greatness is down to consistency.
Brady continued playing until he was 45, leaving many people asking what was the secret to his longevity – and his longtime friend has the answer.
“You really don’t see that anymore in this generation, he really practices what he preaches,” Gronk told former teammate Julian Edelman, 38, on the Games with Names podcast.
“There are no and, ifs, or buts about Tom Brady being Tom Brady.
“What he puts out there, what he preaches, he practices it.
“There’s no doubt about it. There are a lot of people out there on social media, or at a lecture, they’re reminiscing about, ‘This is what you gotta do to be great, this is what you gotta do to be successful.’
“Well Tom Brady does what he says on a daily basis.
“He takes care of his body, he takes care of his mind, he competes, and that’s what makes him so great.”
Gronk’s relationship with quarterback Tom Brady, 47, was the foundation of the Patriots’ dynasty under Belicheck.
The dynamic duo, who now work alongside each other on Fox NFL Sunday, combined for an impressive 98 touchdowns throughout their NFL careers.
While Gronkowski made 620 receptions from Brady across 141 games over 11 seasons for both the Patriots and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
It’s impossible to know what might have happened had Brady and Gronkowski not played together, but it’s fair to say that it would have had a huge impact on both of their careers.
And it’s not just Fox colleague Brady that could have had a huge knock-on effect from the trade, but also fellow Fox on-screen talent Greg Olsen.
Gronkowski revealed that tight end Olsen was going to be traded to the Patriots from the Chicago Bears had New England been unable to draft Gronk with the 42nd pick.
He added: “I also heard through a grapevine, that if I didn’t get drafted to the New England Patriots, Greg Olsen was going to get traded that day for a draft pick to the New England Patriots.
“Because the Patriots were looking for a tight end”.
That could have had a huge knock-on effect on Olsen’s career, who despite being a three-time Pro Bowler, never managed to win the Super Bowl.
Had Olsen moved to the Patriots and played alongside Brady, it could have been him that managed to win four rings instead.
Olsen, who is another regular on Fox NFL Sunday, ultimately left the Bears in 2011, going on to shine with the Carolina Panthers before retiring as a Seattle Seahawk.
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