115 Facts About Rob Gronkowski

1.

Robert James Gronkowski was born on May 14,1989 and is an American former football tight end who played in the National Football League for 11 seasons.

2.

Rob Gronkowski played college football at the University of Arizona, winning several awards, including being named a Sporting News and Rivals.

3.

Rob Gronkowski set several NFL records, including being the first player of his position to lead the league in receiving touchdowns.

4.

Rob Gronkowski has the most career postseason receiving yards by a tight end.

5.

Rob Gronkowski has the most career postseason receiving touchdowns for his position with 15 to date, as well as the most combined receptions and receiving yards by a tight end in Super Bowl history.

6.

Rob Gronkowski is ranked first in average receiving yards per game, average yards per target, and average touchdowns per game among tight ends.

7.

Rob Gronkowski holds the Patriots franchise record of total receiving touchdowns.

8.

Rob Gronkowski was born in Amherst, New York, on May 14,1989, and was raised in nearby Williamsville.

9.

Rob Gronkowski is the second youngest son of Gordon Gronkowski and Diane Walters, and is of Polish descent through his father.

10.

Rob Gronkowski's father is a former college football guard for Syracuse University from 1977 to 1981 and later founded a high-end fitness equipment business.

11.

Rob Gronkowski is a great-grandson of Ignatius Gronkowski who represented the United States in cycling at the 1924 Summer Olympics in Paris, France, and held five world records in the sport.

12.

Rob Gronkowski played hockey until he was 14; he then started playing basketball.

13.

Rob Gronkowski attended Williamsville North High School for his first three years of high school, playing tight end and defensive end, as well as freshman kickoff specialist, supposedly due to his having the biggest feet on the team; center in basketball; and first baseman in baseball for the WNHS Spartans.

14.

Rob Gronkowski was named an All-Western New York first-team and All-State second-team player.

15.

Academically, Rob Gronkowski was in the National Honor Society, citing math as his best subject, and English the worst.

16.

In 2006, Rob Gronkowski moved to suburban Pittsburgh, where he attended Woodland Hills High School for his senior year.

17.

Rob Gronkowski was recruited by Kentucky, Arizona, Clemson, Louisville, Maryland, Ohio State, and Syracuse.

18.

Rob Gronkowski graduated from Woodland Hills in 2007 with a 3.75 GPA and 1560 out of 2400 SAT score.

19.

Rob Gronkowski was named The Sporting News freshman All-American, Rivals.

20.

Rob Gronkowski missed the first three games of the 2008 season, but later recorded 47 receptions for 672 yards and a team-best ten touchdowns.

21.

Rob Gronkowski was twice named the John Mackey National Tight End of the Week, including his performance in a failed comeback bid against Oregon, when he caught 12 passes for 143 yards.

22.

Rob Gronkowski set the school records for a tight end for single-game, single-season, and career receptions, yards, and touchdowns.

23.

Rob Gronkowski was named an Associated Press third-team All-American and All-Pac-10 first-team tight end.

24.

Rob Gronkowski missed his junior season in 2009 due to back surgery, which caused his draft stock to fall.

25.

Rob Gronkowski was drafted by the New England Patriots in the second round with the 42nd overall pick in the 2010 NFL Draft, after a draft day trade with the Oakland Raiders; in pre-draft evaluations revealed in May 2016, Raiders scouts had rated Rob Gronkowski as the "best all-around player in the draft".

26.

Rob Gronkowski became the highest drafted tight end out of Arizona, breaking the mark set by Brandon Manumaleuna in 2001.

27.

Rob Gronkowski signed a four-year contract on July 25,2010.

28.

Rob Gronkowski recorded his first 100-yard receiving game with six receptions for 102 receiving yards and a receiving touchdown in the regular season finale against the Miami Dolphins to give him 10 on the season.

29.

In 16 games played, Rob Gronkowski started 11 games and caught 42 passes for 546 yards.

30.

Rob Gronkowski was nominated three times for Pepsi NFL Rookie of the Week, in Weeks 10,14, and 17, winning twice and losing in Week 10 to Tim Tebow.

31.

Rob Gronkowski finished fifth in fan balloting at tight end for the 2011 Pro Bowl, and fourth overall among rookies.

32.

Rob Gronkowski received one writer's vote for the Associated Press 2010 All-Pro Team.

33.

In Week 11, against the Kansas City Chiefs, Rob Gronkowski caught two touchdown passes, including a career-long 52-yard catch and run, to equal his 2010 touchdown total in just ten games.

34.

Rob Gronkowski passed his reception and yardage totals from 2010 in only eight games.

35.

Rob Gronkowski broke the NFL record for touchdowns scored in a single season by a tight end when he had the second three-touchdown game of his career in the Patriots' Week 13 victory against the Indianapolis Colts.

36.

At game's end, Rob Gronkowski had sole possession of the touchdown scoring record, with 14, and shared the record for receiving touchdowns, 13, with Antonio Gates and Vernon Davis.

37.

Rob Gronkowski took sole possession of the tight end receiving record a week later against the Washington Redskins, in which he caught his 14th and 15th touchdown passes of the season; in total, he had six receptions for a career-high 160 yards.

38.

Rob Gronkowski's performance earned him his first AFC Offensive Player of the Week award, and, for the second week in a row, NFL.

39.

Rob Gronkowski ended the season with 1,327 receiving yards, breaking the previous NFL record for a tight end of 1,310 set by Jimmy Graham of the Saints earlier that same day.

40.

Rob Gronkowski's 17 receiving touchdowns were the most of any NFL player in 2011, marking the first time in NFL history a tight end had sole possession of the league lead.

41.

Rob Gronkowski was voted the starting tight end for the AFC at the 2012 Pro Bowl.

42.

Rob Gronkowski was ranked 21st by his fellow players on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2012.

43.

Rob Gronkowski alone had more catches than the entire Broncos offense, as quarterback Tim Tebow completed just 9 of 26 passes.

44.

Rob Gronkowski still managed to finish with five receptions for 87 yards.

45.

On June 8,2012, Rob Gronkowski signed a six-year, $54 million contract extension, the largest ever for an NFL tight end.

46.

Rob Gronkowski broke his left forearm late in the fourth quarter during an extra point He became the third tight end in NFL history to achieve three seasons with at least 10 touchdown receptions, and the first ever to do it in three consecutive seasons.

47.

Rob Gronkowski returned to practice in Week 15, and participated in the Week 17 game against the Miami Dolphins, scoring a touchdown.

48.

Rob Gronkowski re-injured his left arm in the first quarter of the Patriots' first playoff game, against the Houston Texans.

49.

Rob Gronkowski required another operation, and missed the remainder of the playoffs.

50.

In 11 games in the 2012 season, Rob Gronkowski had 790 receiving yards and 11 touchdowns.

51.

Rob Gronkowski earned a Pro Bowl nomination despite missing some playing time.

52.

Rob Gronkowski was ranked 25th by his fellow players on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2013.

53.

In February 2013, Rob Gronkowski was diagnosed with an infection in his forearm.

54.

On May 20,2013, Rob Gronkowski underwent a fourth surgery on his forearm to replace the hardware implanted in the second procedure and perform tissue biopsies.

55.

Rob Gronkowski was cleared to play for the October 20,2013, game against the New York Jets.

56.

Rob Gronkowski tore his ACL and MCL, which prematurely ended his 2013 season.

57.

In seven games, Rob Gronkowski produced 592 receiving yards and four receiving touchdowns in six starts.

58.

Rob Gronkowski was ranked 41st by his fellow players on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2014.

59.

Rob Gronkowski played on limited snaps as the Patriots worked him back to full strength slowly.

60.

In Week 14 against the San Diego Chargers, Rob Gronkowski became the first tight end in NFL history to catch at least 10 touchdowns in four separate seasons.

61.

Rob Gronkowski finished the season with 82 receptions for 1,124 receiving yards and 12 receiving touchdowns.

62.

Rob Gronkowski earned his third Pro Bowl nomination and his second First Team-All Pro nomination for his 2014 season.

63.

At the 2015 ESPY Awards, Rob Gronkowski won the Comeback Player of the Year award for his 2014 season.

64.

Rob Gronkowski was ranked 10th by his fellow players on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2015.

65.

Rob Gronkowski was fined twice this season, once for "unnecessary roughness" against Indianapolis Colts safety Sergio Brown, and the other time occurring during Super Bowl XLIX.

66.

Rob Gronkowski caught four passes for 87 yards and a touchdown, for a total of 10 touchdowns and 1,018 yards on the season.

67.

Rob Gronkowski dedicated the touchdown to his friend Dana Parenteau, who had died at the age of 43 two days earlier.

68.

Rob Gronkowski had the Patriots' final touchdown to put the Patriots within two points, but the resulting two-point conversion was unsuccessful.

69.

Rob Gronkowski was selected to the Pro Bowl and to the AP All-Pro first team for the fourth time in his career; he led all non-quarterbacks in fan voting for the Pro Bowl, and received 48 of 50 All-Pro votes at tight end.

70.

Rob Gronkowski was ranked as the ninth best player on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2016.

71.

Rob Gronkowski missed the first two games of the 2016 season due to a hamstring injury and was limited in his next two games.

72.

Rob Gronkowski was officially placed on injured reserve on December 3,2016, after having surgery the previous day.

73.

Rob Gronkowski finished the season with 25 receptions on 38 targets for 540 yards and three touchdowns.

74.

Rob Gronkowski was on injured reserve when the Patriots won Super Bowl LI on February 5,2017.

75.

Rob Gronkowski began the 2017 season healthy after missing much of the previous season on the injured reserve list.

76.

Rob Gronkowski injured his groin during a Week 2 victory over the New Orleans Saints, leaving the game early, but the injury did not result in missing any further games.

77.

In Week 12, against the Miami Dolphins, Rob Gronkowski caught five passes for 82 receiving yards and two receiving touchdowns.

78.

Rob Gronkowski was upset, claiming that White should have been flagged for a pass interference penalty.

79.

Rob Gronkowski caught three consecutive passes for 69 yards on the Patriots' game-winning drive, and then caught the ensuing two-point conversion to put the Patriots up by 3.

80.

Rob Gronkowski eclipsed the 1,000-yard mark on the season for the fourth time in his career, joining Tony Gonzalez and Jason Witten as the only NFL tight ends with four 1,000-yard seasons.

81.

On December 19,2017, Rob Gronkowski was named to his fifth Pro Bowl.

82.

Rob Gronkowski finished the 2017 season with 69 receptions for 1,084 yards, most among tight ends, and eight touchdowns.

83.

On January 21,2018, Rob Gronkowski suffered a concussion on a 21-yard reception during the AFC Championship Game against the Jacksonville Jaguars, being placed on concussion protocol, and did not return to the game.

84.

Rob Gronkowski would be cleared from the protocol just in time for Super Bowl LII against the Philadelphia Eagles.

85.

Rob Gronkowski was ranked 15th by his fellow players on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2018.

86.

However, in his next six games, Rob Gronkowski had some limited production, totaling 22 receptions for 325 yards with no touchdowns.

87.

Rob Gronkowski scored his second touchdown of the season in the Week 12 victory over the New York Jets.

88.

On March 24,2019, after nine seasons, Rob Gronkowski announced his retirement from the NFL, at 29 years old, via Instagram.

89.

Rob Gronkowski further elaborated on his decision five months later, saying that the pain and injuries he had suffered throughout his career had taken a toll on his mental health:.

90.

Rob Gronkowski became the first player in NFL history to catch a pass in five different Super Bowls.

91.

On March 22,2021, Rob Gronkowski re-signed with the Buccaneers on a one-year deal worth $10 million.

92.

Rob Gronkowski had his first 100+ yard receiving game in Week 12 against the Indianapolis Colts, leading all receivers with 123 yards on seven receptions, and followed that with his third multiple-touchdown game of the season, netting two end zone visits among his four catches for 58 yards in Week 13 against the Atlanta Falcons.

93.

Rob Gronkowski finished the 2021 season with 55 receptions for 802 receiving yards and six receiving touchdowns.

94.

Rob Gronkowski announced his retirement for a second time on June 21,2022.

95.

Rob Gronkowski was widely praised for his versatility, having both the catching dexterity of a wide receiver and the blocking skills of an offensive lineman.

96.

Rob Gronkowski is known for his high football IQ and has been acknowledged for his intelligent and versatile route-running.

97.

Rob Gronkowski's production spoke for itself, but his daily attitude, unmistakably positive energy wherever he went and toward whoever he touched will never be forgotten.

98.

Rob Gronkowski is widely thought of as the best tight end in the history of the game.

99.

Rob Gronkowski is one of the most positive people I have ever been around and he loves to have fun.

100.

Rob Gronkowski is known to dance before spiking, and in 2012 imitated a Queen's Guard which he described as "that little nutcracker dude" before his touchdown celebration while playing at Wembley Stadium in the United Kingdom.

101.

In July 2015, Rob Gronkowski co-wrote a memoir titled It's Good to be Gronk with Jason Rosenhaus.

102.

In 2019, Rob Gronkowski entered ESPN's "World Fame 100" list of most famous athletes in the world; the outlet estimated his endorsement income the past year alone was $8 million.

103.

In October 2020, ZooTampa at Lowry Park named their newly born greater one-horned rhino "Gronk" to celebrate Rob Gronkowski joining the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

104.

Rob Gronkowski has appeared in print, television and online advertisements for brands such as USAA, Nike, Dunkin' Donuts, Visa, T-Mobile, Tide, Lyft, JetBlue, Zynga, Cheerios, Oberto, SixStar Pro, Bodyarmor SuperDrink, DraftKings, Kids Footlocker, and video games Mobile Strike and Halo among others.

105.

Rob Gronkowski has appeared for several advertisements for Tide including commercials for Super Bowl LI.

106.

Rob Gronkowski was the cover of video sports game Madden NFL 17 published by EA Sports in 2016 for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 3, Xbox One and Xbox 360.

107.

An erotica novel inspired by Rob Gronkowski called A Gronking To Remember, written by Lacey Noonan, was published in December 2014.

108.

Rob Gronkowski has appeared as fictionalized versions of himself in the 2015 film Entourage, a 2017 episode of Family Guy entitled "Gronkowsbees", The Simpsons episode "The Town", and has roles in the American crime-drama thriller film American Violence and You Can't Have It among others.

109.

Rob Gronkowski joined Fox Sports as an analyst for its NFL programming during his year-long retirement in 2019, making his on-air debut during Fox NFL Thursday.

110.

Rob Gronkowski co-hosted Fox's New Year's Eve with Steve Harvey in New York in 2019.

111.

Rob Gronkowski competed on the third season of The Masked Singer as "White Tiger" where he made it to the Super Nine.

112.

Rob Gronkowski co-hosted the 2022 Kids' Choice Awards with Miranda Cosgrove on April 9,2022, on Nickelodeon.

113.

Rob Gronkowski set up the Gronk Nation Youth Foundation which is dedicated to "help kids stay actively involved in school and sports and provide them with the tools needed to help them follow their dreams and live a happy and more successful life".

114.

Since 2015, Rob Gronkowski has been in a relationship with model Camille Kostek.

115.

In 2015, Rob Gronkowski stated that he has not spent any of the money he has made from his NFL contracts and strictly lived off the earnings from his business ventures, endorsement deals and appearance fees.