Gronk dishes on ‘wild’ 2018 offseason, ignoring Belichick’s calls

Gronk dishes on ‘wild’ 2018 offseason, ignoring Belichick’s calls originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

Before Tampa Bay Gronk, there was almost Detroit Gronk.

Rob Gronkowski is one of the greatest players in New England Patriots history, but the team came very close to trading the legendary tight end during the 2018 offseason. In fact, the Patriots actually had a deal in place with the Lions to trade Gronkowski to Detroit in exchange for first- and second-round picks not long after New England fell to the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl LII.

Gronkowski didn’t exactly cooperate, however, later admitting that he threatened to retire if the Patriots went through with the trade. His threat worked, as the deal was never completed and New England won a Super Bowl the next season with Gronk playing a key role.

During an appearance on 98.5 The Sports Hub’s Zolak & Bertrand on Wednesday, Gronkowski spoke candidly about how that offseason went down and detailed giving Bill Belichick the cold shoulder following Super Bowl LII.

“Oh, that was a little bit wild,” Gronkowski said. “That was actually — I was kind of being a jerk-off. I didn’t really answer Coach Belichick’s phone calls or anything. I was kind of mad, just how things went down after the Philadelphia game and all that.

“And then I got traded without even talking to anyone in the organization. That’s how bad it was going down. But I always wanted to be a New England Patriot, and I did not want to get traded that year, especially with Julian (Edelman) still there, Tom (Brady is) still there at the quarterback position.

“Everyone’s like, ‘Oh, you didn’t want to go to Detroit.’ No, I just didn’t want to leave New England. I was just being a jerk-off, that’s all.”

That’s one way to put it, Rob.

The end of the 2017 season and the 2018 offseason was a turning point for the Patriots franchise. Gronkowski was disgruntled and worn down following a grueling 2017 campaign and ended up retiring after the 2018 Super Bowl. Brady didn’t receive a new contract from the Patriots in the summer of 2018 and ended up leaving New England after the 2019 season to join the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, where Gronkowski unretired to join his quarterback and win another Super Bowl in 2020.

Given the drama that unfolded during the 2018 offseason — with New England’s best offensive skill player not answering Belichick’s phone calls — it’s remarkable that the Patriots still won Super Bowl LIII to earn their sixth championship in an 18-year span.

Gronkowski also discussed Patriots vs. Chiefs dynasty debate, comparisons to Travis Kelce and more. Check out the full interview below.