Rob Gronkowski Says Raiders, Giants Reached Out About Unretiring in 2023 Offseason

If Rob Gronkowski wanted to be playing football in 2023, he would be.

Gronkowski said Friday during an appearance on Pardon My Take that the Las Vegas Raiders and New York Giants approached him during the offseason about unretiring and playing for them.

"I just wasn't interested. I mean they're great teams. It would have been a great situation, but I just wasn't ready to go," Gronkowski said (1:40:30 mark).

Gronkowski previously said in December 2022 that two teams reached out to him about unretiring but he wouldn't reveal which teams did so.

Gronkowski played for former Raiders head coach Josh McDaniels during his tenure with the Patriots and Giants head coach Brian Daboll was also his tight ends coach in New England.

Had he joined the Raiders, Gronkowski would have been a tremendous mentor for rookie tight end Michael Mayer, who was selected in the second round of the 2023 draft out of Notre Dame.

However, the four-time Super Bowl champion wouldn't have been stepping into the best situation, especially considering the Raiders are fourth in the AFC West with a 5-7 record and are likely to miss the playoffs.

As for the Giants, he would have teamed up with former Raiders tight end Darren Waller to form one of the more formidable tight end duos in the league. But like the Raiders, the Giants are also unlikely to make the playoffs as they sit third in the NFC East with a 4-8 record.

Gronkowski, who is also a four-time All-Pro and five-time Pro Bowler, is widely regarded as one of the best tight ends in NFL history. He caught 621 passes for 9,286 yards and 92 touchdowns in 143 games across 11 seasons.

The 34-year-old retired after the 2018 season but returned to the field in 2020 alongside his longtime quarterback Tom Brady when the veteran announced he was leaving the Patriots and signing with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.