Rob Gronkowski Return To NFL? There’s No Way … Right?

Rob Gronkowski might be having second thoughts about his career. Or at this point, is it technically third thoughts?

Gronkowski, who retired following the 2018 season and again after the 2021 campaign, is mulling yet another return to the NFL, according to DenverSports.com. Gronkowski, league sources told Cecil Lammey, is working out with a potential comeback in mind and might already have a preferred destination.

“Sources tell me Gronkowski has been working out in Vail this offseason as he wants to physically be ready for another NFL season,” Lammey wrote. “High-altitude training in the offseason could prepare for the rigors of training camp if a team shows interest.”

That attitude training could do the legendary tight end especially well, as Lammey mentioned his hometown Denver Broncos as a potential destination. Both of Gronkowski’s brothers played in Denver, and according to the report, Gronkowski likes Broncos head coach Sean Payton.

That’s not a completely random connection, either. The two worked at FOX together in the first season following Gronkowski’s retirement before Payton left the TV world to take over the Broncos. They had a pretty good rapport, too.

All of that being said: It sure feels like a stretch that this could actually happen. Gronkowski was outspoken for much of his career about the physical demands that come with getting ready for and playing on Sunday. It took a major toll on his body, too. He seems content with his life as a TV analyst doing whatever he wants daily.

Would he trade all of that in to go play with a 25-year-old second-year quarterback and take orders from an old-school veteran coach? This is the NFL’s silly season, and no disrespect to Lammey, he’s no Adam Schefter or Ian Rapoport (at least not yet). It seems, for now, this is just as likely a leverage play for a new FOX deal as it does an earnest desire to return to the NFL.

If Gronkowski does return, though, it sure would add an added element to the 2025 season. And if he does land in Denver, the AFC West would become even more fascinating with Gronkowski renewing his rivalry with the Kansas City Chiefs and creating a new one with Las Vegas Raiders minority owner Tom Brady.