ATLANTA _ Could Gronk hang 'em up after Super Bowl LIII?
Possibly, he said. But he hasn't decided yet.
Rob Gronkowski, the Patriots tight end, said on Monday at Super Bowl Opening Night that he isn't certain whether he will return to the team and the NFL for the 2019 season. At 29 years old, his body has taken a beating, he has interests in other ventures like acting, and if his team comes out on top Sunday against the Rams he'll have collected three rings. That all could add up to his walking away from the sport.
Then again, it might just stoke his desire for more of it.
"As of right now, that's like the last thing I'm thinking of," Gronkowski said of the big decision that looms for him.
In about two weeks, though, it'll be foremost on his mind.
"You sit back, you relax, you get some down time, enjoyment time, and you see where you want to go with it," he said.
Pressed further on his thinking on the matter of retirement, Gronk laughed and called it a "tricky question."
"You're trying to get an answer!" he roared.
Yes. Very much so.
Gronkowski wasn't giving one.
"I haven't done that sitdown yet," he said. "It's still two weeks away."
Gronkowski's level of play will certainly figure into the discussion, both with his family, with the team and internally. He had one of his best games of the season in the AFC Championship Game win over the Chiefs, catching six of 11 targets for 79 yards.
But the sport takes its toll on everyone, and there and plenty who think Gronk should get out while he can.
"I look at a player like Rob Gronkowski, and I say to a player like that, 'Look man, you gotta think about your quality of life after football,' " former Patriots receiver Troy Brown said Monday on ESPN. "You've made a ton of money, you're probably going to make a ton of money after football. Just walk away from the game right now so you can enjoy your money, or somebody else will."
For now, Gronkowski seems to be enjoying the speculation.
When it was mentioned to him that just a few days ago his quarterback, Tom Brady, held up a big zero with his fingers when asked about the chances that Super Bowl LIII will be his final game, Gronkowski said he wouldn't put a percentage on returning.
Then he thought about it and smiled.
"You know what number I'm putting up as my chances?" he said, suggesting reporters look up his favorite digits. "That's the probability."
