Super Bowl legend Buccaneers star Rob Gronkowski announced he was retiring once again from the NFL and said he was able to walk away from professional football knowing he “gave it everything I had.”
The Pro-Bowl 33-year-old tight end of the Tampa Bay team posted a lengthy letter on Instagram Tuesday about how he dreamed in college about one day being able to play for the Buccaneers, and said the opportunity he had in Tampa Bay for the last two years was more than he ever could have hoped for.
“In college, I was asked to write about a dream job opportunity that I wanted to pursue and where the location would be,” Gronkowski wrote. “Every time I had to write about my future, no matter what, I picked being a professional football player.”
“For that assignment though, we had to pick the location,” he added. “So I wrote that I wanted to play in Tampa for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, for many reasons, the sunny weather being #1. I completely forgot about writing this report until 2 years ago when I had the opportunity to join the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. And let me tell ya, the journey in Tampa over the last 2 years has blown away what I originally wrote about in college, big time.”
“And for this, I want to thank the whole entire first class Buccaneers organization for an amazing ride, trusting me to come back to play and help build a championship team,” Gronk continued. “I will now be going back into my retirement home, walking away from football again with my head held high knowing I gave it everything I had, good or bad, every time I stepped out on the field.”
He concluded his post by noting that the “friendships and relationships” he made there will last forever. He also wrote about the opportunity he was given to come out of retirement and win another “championship.”
The former New England Patriots star previously walked away from professional football briefly in 2018 due to injuries before coming out of retirement to join his old pal Tom Brady, ESPN noted. At the time, Brady had left the Patriots and signed with the Buccaneers. The pair ended up leading their team all the way to the Super Bowl and winning, beating the Kansas City Chiefs in February 2021. During his career, Gronk won four Super Bowls, three with New England and one with the Bucs.
No word yet on what his next plans will be.
Source: Dailywire
