Rob Gronkowski Reveals How He Faked His Video Workouts to Bucs in Offseason

Tampa Bay Buccaneers tight end Rob Gronkowski mastered the art of the virtual workout when he came out of retirement to join the team this offseason.

He told reporters Monday that he filmed several days' worth of workouts to send to the coaching staff in one sitting, opting to change his shirt after multiple reps to have footage to send the next time he was asked to do so.

Gronkowski retired in March 2019 after nine seasons with the New England Patriots, but he decided to join his former quarterback Tom Brady in Tampa Bay in April. 

Whatever his strategy, it seemed to work out decently well, considering the then-30-year-old spent last year's Super Bowl week hosting a music festival in Miami Beach. But in his return to the field, he appeared in 16 games for only the second time in his career and first since 2011, collecting 623 yards and seven touchdowns on 45 receptions. 

His offseason ploy didn't have an effect on his new coach's perception of him. Buccaneers head coach Bruce Arians said Thursday that he was impressed about how hard Gronkowski worked.

"I didn't know about Gronk's work ethic," Buccaneers head coach Bruce Arians told reporters Thursday. "It's unbelievable."

Bucs general manager Jason Licht praised his locker room presence, something Patriots owner Robert Kraft mentioned in a statement when Gronkowski stepped away from the game (h/t Chris Mason of MassLive). 

Whether he took a fair approach to the offseason workout program or not, Gronkowski and Tom Brady are teaming up for their fifth Super Bowl appearance together on Sunday. 

"We just gave each other a big hug and said, 'This is what it’s all about. This why we came down here. This is our dream,'" Gronkowski told James Corden last week after winning the NFC championship.