NFL Twitter Reacts to Rob Gronkowski’s Retirement Decision

It’s official: Gronk has spiked his last football.

Or at least he has as an NFL player. The four-time Super Bowl champion announced his retirement on Tuesday, thanking the Buccaneers with an Instagram post.

“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,” Gronkowski said in the Instagram post. “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.”

Gronkowski first retired in 2019 after nine seasons with the Patriots, but he came out of retirement in 2020 to join Tom Brady and the Buccaneers en route to another Super Bowl. Gronkowski had been non-committal about returning during the offseason before announcing on Tuesday that he was done for good.

Gronkowski’s impact on the game during his career was immense. The former New England and Tampa star will go down as one of the best tight ends in NFL history. Along with his Super Bowl championships, he walks away from football as a four-time All-Pro and five-time Pro Bowler. He’s third all-time in receiving touchdowns among tight ends at 92, trailing only Tony Gonzalez and Antonio Gates.

Unsurprisingly, people throughout the league took to social media to congratulate Gronk on his outstanding career. Here are some of the best from the bunch:

• Daily Cover: NBA Draft? Nah. He’s Following the Money, Right Back to School. 

For more Daily Cover coverage, go to Daily Cover