Patriots Legend Rob Gronkowski Reveals His Stance on NFL Unretirement 4 Years After Hanging Up His Cleats

He’s done it before. Former New England Patriots TE Rob Gronkowski shocked the football world in 2020 when he came out of retirement to chase a Super Bowl with Tom Brady. Four years after retiring for good, fans have wondered if lightning could strike twice – but Gronkowski’s latest comments suggest this chapter of his career is closed for good.

“I left everything, you know, in the tank out on the field. I’m empty,” Gronkowski said in an interview with Front Office Sports. “But it’s easy to look like it. You know, you can stay in shape and not really be in game shape. It was way easier just to look in shape than actually have the glamour muscles. It’s easy to do that, especially once you have them from all the years.

“Like it’s kind of like just installed in you now from working out for so long and running around for so long. But yeah, I don’t have that stamina to go out there and play anymore.”

Rob Gronkowski announced his retirement from the NFL in June 2022. However, in November 2025, he joined the New England Patriots for one day to retire as one of their players. But notably, this isn’t the first time Gronkowski took retirement from his professional football career.

In March 2019, the legendary Patriots TE took his initial retirement at the age of 29 after nine seasons in the league, citing the physical and mental toll of numerous injuries. However, Gronkowski stayed away from the game for only one season.

In April 2020, Rob Gronkowski came out of retirement to join his legendary duo, Tom Brady, at the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, where they won the Super Bowl LV together. At that time, Gronkowski still had a consistent output in the games, averaging over 600 receiving yards per season.

However, after two seasons with the Buccaneers, he left the game satisfied in 2022. While Gronkowski maintained an incredibly strict, daily fitness routine post-retirement, he did not regularly train for football anymore. But given an opportunity to join a current NFL team, Gronkowski, who was born in New York, had one franchise in mind.

“I’ll go with the Buffalo Bills cuz I’m from that’s my hometown,” Gronkowski added. “With them, you know, being 2-0 with the way that Josh Allen is playing and Dalton Kincaid, we could be a one-two intense duo. It would be a great combination. That would be, in my eyes, the best team to be on right now.”

It is a what-if statement for now since Rob Gronkowski clearly mentioned his current fitness to play an NFL game.

As of now, following his NFL retirement, the former Patriots TE transitioned into a media personality. He serves as a regular on-air studio analyst for FOX NFL Sunday and FOX NFL Kickoff throughout the football season.

Outside of the main Sunday television broadcast, Gronkowski also co-hosts a twice-weekly FOX Sports digital series called The Gronk & Jules Show alongside his former New England Patriots teammate Julian Edelman, which is part of his current schedule that he seemingly enjoys.

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