On Thursday night, the New England Patriots made short work of the New York Giants. Still, one of the biggest news items surrounding the Patriots of recent was the announcement that FOX signed former tight end Rob Gronkowski as a pregame show member.
Now, more news emerges; with owner Robert Kraft still holding onto hope that Gronkowski will make a return to the playing field. This news comes from Adam Schefter. Moreover, Schefter reports that on the NFL Network pregame prior to Thursday night’s contest; Kraft stated that his former player is yet to file retirement papers.
Patriots’ owner Robert Kraft, on the NFL Network pregame show, said Rob Gronkowski has yet to officially file retirement papers. Kraft said he can always hope and pray that Gronkowski might come back.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) October 10, 2019
If you take Kraft at his word, he really wants Gronkowski back in uniform to join the current unbeaten 2019 Patriots. When asked if he wants a Gronkowski return, he simply stated:
“We can pray and hope.”
Moreover, check out the NFL on FOX getting people hyped for Gronkowski. Prior to the game, Gronkowski gave everyone a short preview of what they can expect if he remains in the analyst seat.
"You wanna know why Julian @Edelman11 calls himself the squirrel? That's because he IS A SQUIRREL." 🤣🤣@RobGronkowski: The greatest hype man! (@Patriots) pic.twitter.com/xuPeXSZr1y
— FOX Sports: NFL (@NFLonFOX) October 11, 2019
Obviously at this point, Gronkowski seems like he would be a novelty item to an already-stacked Patriots team. Tom Brady didn’t throw a touchdown on Thursday night, yet still managed 334 yards passing. The Patriots got four touchdowns on the ground, including from legendary quarterback Tom Brady.
New England is the odds-on favorite to win the Super Bowl once again. Surely, that’s no surprise; and adding Gronkowski would only increase those odds. It’s worth discussion whether or not watching a still only 30-years old Gronkowski would be more entertaining as a player or analyst.
Finally, it’s obvious that Gronkowski has turned his life into a success. We can expect this tug of war between the Patriots and FOX to continue for his services for a while. Having two organizations like that wanting your services at the same time must feel pretty good.
