Rob Gronkowski, Kraft Joke About Contract for Jets Game After Patriots Retirement

Three years after playing his final NFL game, Rob Gronkowski has formally retired as a member of the New England Patriots.

Gronkowski signed a one-day contract with the Patriots on Wednesday to end his career with the organization he spent the first nine years of his NFL career with from 2010 to '18.

Before Gronkowski officially put pen to paper on his one day, Patriots owner Robert Kraft tried to suggest a two-day contract that would allow the legendary tight end to play in Thursday's game against the New York Jets and prompted an amusing response.

Even though Gronkowski did technically retire in 2022 after two seasons with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Wednesday's ceremony gave him the chance to go out with the team that he is most closely associated with.

Gronkowski, who currently works as an analyst on Fox's NFL Sunday pregame show, said on the Nov. 9 episode that he was going to sign a one-day contract that would allow him to "be a Patriot for life."

ESPN's Mike Reiss noted the idea was suggested by Susan Hurley, a former Patriots cheerleader and philanthropist, and Patriots owner Robert Kraft supported it.

"I like that a lot, and the reason that we're really going to do that is because of Susan Hurley," said Gronkowski.

According to Reiss, Kraft was already planning this type of ceremonial event for Gronkowski next year when he became eligible for induction into the Patriots' Hall of Fame and decided to expedite it.

After Tom Brady and Bill Belichick, a reasonable argument could be made that Gronkowski was the most important member of the Patriots' dynasty. He certainly helped them prolong it by coming along at a perfect time in the second half of the Brady-Belichick era.

Randy Moss' tenure with the Patriots ended early in the 2010 season when he was traded to the Minnesota Vikings.

Gronkowski, who was a second-round pick in the 2010 draft, essentially took Moss' place as the big-play threat in the passing game. He averaged 15.1 yards per reception and caught 79 touchdowns in 115 games with the Patriots.

His career mark of 15.0 yards per reception ranks ninth among all tight ends in NFL history.

During his nine seasons with the Patriots, Gronkowski was named to the All-Pro first team four times and won three Super Bowl titles. He retired for the first time after the 2018 season before returning to the NFL in 2020 with the Bucs to reunite with Brady.

Gronkowski won another Super Bowl in his first season with Tampa Bay. He ranks sixth all-time among tight ends in receiving yards (9,286), third in receiving touchdowns (92) and 10th in receptions (621).

When the Patriots formally induct Gronkowski into their Hall of Fame, he will become the 38th person in franchise history to receive the honor. He will become eligible for induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2027.