Rob Gronkowski makes feelings known about ghosting Joe Burrow's recruitment plea to join Bengals: "I kind of got embarrassed"
When Rob Gronkowski retired from the NFL for a second time in 2022, many, including Joe Burrow, believed he would return if the right opportunity came along. The Cincinnati Bengals quarterback decided to reach out to the four-time Super Bowl champion and gauge his interest in teaming up with him, but the tight end didn't respond. However, it wasn't on purpose.
During an appearance on The Dan Patrick Show on Tuesday, the host asked Gronkowski why he ghosted Burrow when he tried to recruit him in 2022. The retired tight end explained that he had previously had a bad experience texting someone who he believed was a teammate and decided never to respond to anyone without meeting them first.
The 35-year-old explained that when he got a text from Burrow, he thought it was from a person pretending to be the Bengals star as the duo had never met. However, when the quarterback told him it was him, he was horrified. Rob Gronkowski told Patrick:
"I see him at [Michael Rubin's] White Party. We're hanging out talking. He's like, 'Yo Gronk. I texted you, bro,'" Rob Gronkowski said. "My eyes shot up. I kind of got embarrassed, because, like, I would have text him back if I knew 100% because I'm a big fan, I really am. And I was like, 'No way, bro. That was you?' He's like, Yeah, man, you ghosted me.' I kind of felt bad because, like, I wanted to respond to Joe Burrow."
When the four-time NFL champion began his stint at Fox Sports as an analyst, he was asked which young quarterback would he like to play with. He answered Burrow and claimed that the Bengals star reminded him of his former teammate Tom Brady. That prompted the quarterback to reach out to him, but they couldn't connect.
Rob Gronkowski had no interest in returning to the NFL
While Rob Gronkowski wishes he hadn't ghosted Joe Burrow, he clarified that had they spoken and had the quarterback asked him if he wanted to team up, his answer would have been no. The retired tight end said:
"I mean, Burrow [is a] cool dude, and I just told him. I was like, 'Hey, it's probably a good thing I didn't respond.' He's like, 'Yo man, I could've used you.' And I was like, 'No, when I'm retired, trust me, you don't want me out there on the field. It would have only brought your play down, buddy.' So that's how it went out."
Gronkowski initially retired at the end of the 2018 season but returned in 2020 after Tom Brady joined the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and asked the tight end to join him in his new venture. The duo won their fourth Super Bowl together in their first season in Tampa.
They played together for another year before the tight end called it a day on his likely Hall of Fame career and embarked on a new career as an analyst.