Rob Gronkowski, Randy Moss, LeSean McCoy and Most Shocking NFL Trades Ever

A stunning trade quickly went down Tuesday as the New England Patriots traded the rights to the retired Rob Gronkowski and a seventh-round pick to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in exchange for a fourth-rounder, per ESPN's Adam Schefter.

Gronkowski, who retired shortly after winning Super Bowl LIII in February 2019 with the Pats, is a five-time Pro Bowler and three-time Super Bowl champion. He played with New England from 2010 to 2018.

Now he heads to Tampa with old friend Tom Brady, the six-time Super Bowl champion quarterback who left the Pats for the Bucs in free agency after 20 seasons with New England.

The Gronk deal immediately makes a list of the most shocking NFL deals of all time.

A list of the main components for some can be found below in chronological order, followed by a closer look back at the most stunning trades in the past 15 years.

Most Shocking NFL Trades Ever

1959: Chicago Cardinals trade running back Ollie Matson to Los Angeles Rams

1961: San Francisco 49ers trade quarterback Y.A. Tittle to New York Giants

1967: Minnesota Vikings trade quarterback Fran Tarkenton to New York Giants

1974: Los Angeles Rams trade quarterback John Hadl to Green Bay Packers

1983: Baltimore Colts trade rights to quarterback John Elway to Denver Broncos

1987: Los Angeles Rams trade running back Eric Dickerson to Indianapolis Colts

1989: Dallas Cowboys trade running back Herschel Walker to Minnesota Vikings

1993: San Francisco 49ers trade quarterback Joe Montana to Kansas City Chiefs

1999: New Orleans Saints trade eight draft picks (six in 1999, two in 2000) to Washington Redskins for No. 5 overall pick in 1999 to select running back Ricky Williams

1999: Indianapolis Colts trade running back Marshall Faulk to the St. Louis Rams

2000: New York Jets trade head coach Bill Belichick to New England Patriots

2002: Oakland Raiders trade head coach Jon Gruden to Tampa Bay Buccaneers

2002: New England Patriots trade quarterback Drew Bledsoe to Buffalo Bills

2004: San Diego Chargers trade draft rights to quarterback Eli Manning to New York Giants, who send back draft rights to quarterback Philip Rivers

2004: Washington Redskins trade cornerback Champ Bailey to Denver Broncos for running back Clinton Portis

2004: San Francisco 49ers trade wide receiver Terrell Owens to Philadelphia Eagles

2007: Oakland Raiders trade wide receiver Randy Moss to New England Patriots

2010: Philadelphia Eagles trade quarterback Donovan McNabb to Washington Redskins

2012: Washington Redskins trade up to No. 2 overall with Los Angeles Rams before draft and take quarterback Robert Griffin III

2015: Philadelphia Eagles trade running back LeSean McCoy to Buffalo Bills

2020: New England Patriots trade tight end Rob Gronkowski to Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Gronkowski to Buccaneers

Gronkowski went from the host of WrestleMania 36 to the WWE's 24/7 champion to Tampa Bay Buccaneer in the span of one month.

Talk of Gronkowski unretiring at some point has persisted even after he officially retired in 2019, and that noise only got louder when the tight end told Andy Cohen on Monday that he was not done playing.

Turns out that a deal would be struck soon, as the Bucs acquired Gronkowski to help form a potentially dominant pass-catching core with wideouts Mike Evans and Chris Godwin.

Football analyst Warren Sharp tweeted what the offense may look like with Gronk in the mix:

It remains to be seen how productive Gronkowski might be after a year away from the game and entering his 10th NFL season, but he was still productive in 2018 despite playing through injuries (47 catches, 682 yards, three touchdowns). He also dominated the final two playoff games with 12 catches and 166 yards.

Plus, the combo of Godwin and Evans should combine to take plenty of pressure off Gronkowski, who was the focal point of opposing defenses for years.

Moss to Patriots

The rich got richer in 2007, as the Patriots, who were starving for some wide receiver help for Brady, landed Randy Moss from the then-Oakland Raiders for a mere fourth-round pick.

All Moss did was form the most dominant single-season quarterback-wideout duo in league history with Brady, who tossed a then-record 50 touchdown passes in 2007. Moss caught an NFL-record 23 of them.

That team stands as the only one in league history to go undefeated during a 16-game regular season.

Moss' three full seasons in New England saw him average 83 catches, 1,255 yards and 16 touchdowns, feats that were accomplished despite Brady missing nearly the entire 2008 season following a season-ending Week 1 injury.

The Pats went 37-11 in the regular season in Moss' three seasons, winning the AFC East twice and the AFC once.

While his tenure didn't result in a Super Bowl win, it's fair to say New England won the trade handily.

McNabb to Redskins

Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Donovan McNabb was notoriously booed after the team picked him second overall in 1999 from a fanbase that wanted running back Ricky Williams.

McNabb stuck around in Philadelphia for 11 years, however, leading the team to four straight NFC Championships from 2001 to 2004 and an NFC title in the final year of that stretch. He made six Pro Bowls during his Eagles tenure as well.

But McNabb's tenure appeared nearing its end after the 2009 season. The Eagles had younger quarterbacks in Kevin Kolb and Michael Vick on the roster and held the option to go with one or the other in 2010.

And that's the route they went. The most shocking part was sending McNabb to an NFC East rival in the Washington Redskins, who sent two draft picks back to Philadelphia and immediately anointed the veteran as their starter.

McNabb could not recapture the same success in Washington, however, tossing more interceptions (15) than touchdowns (14) for the first time in his career. He retired after one more year with the Minnesota Vikings in 2011.

Griffin III to Redskins

The lead-in to the 2012 NFL draft was all about two quarterbacks: can't-miss prospect Andrew Luck and Heisman Trophy-winning signal-caller Robert Griffin III.

Both were highly touted and thought to be the long-term future at their position for whatever franchise picked them. They were going first and second.

The Indianapolis Colts, in need of a quarterback after releasing Peyton Manning, sat first overall.

At No. 2, the then-St. Louis Rams had taken Sam Bradford with the first overall selection a few years prior and were hoping he'd be the answer at quarterback for their long-term future.

That put the Rams in a position to trade down for a haul, and they found a willing partner in the Redskins, who dealt three first-rounders and a second-rounder to move from No. 6 to No. 2.

Griffin was unstoppable in 2012 and won the NFL's Offensive Rookie of the Year award en route to leading the 'Skins to the NFC East title, but he suffered LCL and ACL injuries and had surgery following the season.

He was not the same in the ensuing two years and was eventually benched for Kirk Cousins shortly after his epic 2012 campaign. However, he's still in the league as the backup to NFL MVP Lamar Jackson on the Baltimore Ravens.

McCoy to Bills

Running back LeSean McCoy led the league in rushing in 2013 and added another 1,319 rushing yards in 2014, so watching the Eagles ship the two-time All-Pro to the Buffalo Bills in 2015 for linebacker Kiko Alonso was rather surprising.

Reports eventually surfaced that McCoy and head coach Chip Kelly did not get along, with McCoy saying the following to ESPN's Mike Rodak in 2015 following the trade:

"The relationship was never really great. I feel like I always respected him as a coach. I think that's the way he runs his team. He wants the full control. You see how fast he got rid of all the good players. Especially all the good black players. He got rid of them the fastest. That's the truth. There's a reason. ... It's hard to explain with him. But there's a reason he got rid of all the black players -- the good ones -- like that."

It's not as if the Eagles failed to get anything in return, as Alonso had a rather productive 2013 season with 159 tackles and four interceptions. But McCoy had been so dominant with the Eagles that a trade elsewhere was still rather surprising.

McCoy was largely excellent in Buffalo, making the Pro Bowl three times and eclipsing 1,000 rushing yards in 2016 and 2017. He also was the engine of the offense in 2017, when Buffalo finished 9-7 and made the playoffs for the first time since 1999.