Former New England Patriots tight end and NFL player Rob Gronkowski is bringing his talents to the world of professional wrestling as the retired three-time Super Bowl champion is close to finalizing a deal with WWE, according to a report during ‘WWE Backstage’ on FS1 (h/t ESPN’s Marc Raimondi).
Gronkowski, 30, is reportedly “deep in talks” with WWE but it is currently unclear as to how he will be utilized. Gronkowski took part in the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal back in 2017 at WrestleMania 33, to assist his friend, current WWE superstar Mojo Rawley in winning the entire battle royal.
The report indicated that Gronkowski could appear on FOX’s Friday Night SmackDown as soon as March 20th.
Gronkowski retired from the NFL back in March 2019, citing pain and injuries suffered during his playing career, and being worn down mentally as the main factors in his decision to step away from the game.
Gronkowski has spoken about the possibility of joining WWE, but did say he doesn’t see himself as a full-time wrestler on their roster.
“With wrestling, I don’t feel like I would be a full-time wrestler, but there is one thing I’m down for,” Gronkowski said, back in August 2019. “And that’s to do one crazy match. Practice it for a little bit, go out there — like in a Royal Rumble — go out there, I got my friend in WWE [Mojo Rawley], practice it and do a full-on WWE match. I’m not saying when, maybe five years. I got the rest of my life to do that. I’ve always dreamed about doing that, just one time, going in there and going full-out. That may be a possibility, one time, down the road.”
Rawley has mentioned the idea of him and Gronkowski perhaps teaming up for a match at a future SummerSlam event.
“Hey, man, we’ve got SummerSlam in Boston [this coming August],” Rawley said, back in October 2019. “Maybe we’ll do a tag match. I’ve been doing my own thing, but for him, maybe I’ll do a tag match.”
WWE landing Gronkowski would be a major “get”, and it seems that the stars are aligning for the gridiron superstar to join the professional wrestling juggernaut just in time for WrestleMania 36 in Tampa, Florida next month.
