Rob Gronkowski recalls ‘hilarious’ interaction during his first time meeting Tom Brady

Patriots

Gronkowski thought the NFL would be like “Any Given Sunday” until he met Tom Brady.

Tom Brady and Rob Gronkowski. Jim Davis/Globe Staff
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It didn’t take Rob Gronkowski long to make his mark with the Patriots.

He led the NFL in receiving touchdowns during his second season. The all-pro tight-end later won four Super Bowls catching passes from Tom Brady.

But, what was it like when Gronkowski first met Brady during his rookie season?

Gronkowski shared some memories and initial impressions of Brady with Jason and Travis Kelce on the New Heights podcast.

Brady was more than a decade into his career and had won three Super Bowls by the time the Patriots drafted Gronkowski.

“I was in the training room, getting my foot or my ankle taped or whatever, and he comes up and he’s like, ‘Hey, I’m Tom,” Gronkowski said. “I was like, I’ve got to play it cool, too. I was like, I’ve got to introduce myself. I’m not going to be like, ‘Oh, I’m a huge fan’ or anything. I was like, ‘Oh, I’m Rob.’ But it was hilarious, because it was like, ‘Yeah, Tom, I know you’re Tom, dude.’”

Gronkowski said he came into the NFL thinking it would be like the 1999 film “Any Given Sunday,” which starred Jamie Foxx and Al Pacino.

He said that Brady helped him realize that life in the NFL was not like the movie.

“I’m like, this isn’t anything like “Any Given Sunday,” Gronkowski said of his first few interactions with Brady. “This guy is yelling at me if I mess up a tad bit. This guy is yelling at me like a coach. He’s yelling at me more. It took me a bit to realize where it was coming from and what the love was for. He was kind of hard on me at first because I think he saw some talent in me and the opportunity that was presented in front of me.”

Brady saw the traits that would eventually turn Gronkowski into one of the NFL’s premier tight ends.

“Every single day after practice, he would make me stay,” Gronkowski said. “He would make like two other rookies stay, and he’d be like, ‘We’re getting on the same page’. And he’d be throwing pass after pass, route after route, and I was like man I just took first team, and I just took second team (reps).”

Gronkowski said things began to click about halfway through his rookie season when he learned how Brady wanted things to get done. By the start of his second season with the Patriots, he felt like he had the game “down to a science.”

The extra reps worked out for Gronkowski and Brady. But, Gronkowski said he was grateful for the rare occasions when Brady forgot to throw with him after practice.

“On the days he forgot, I was like, ‘Oh, thank you’, because his kids are here and he would run over to his kids. I was like, ‘Thank you, kids,’” Gronkowski said with a laugh.

Originally posted 2023-08-18 21:08:59.

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