Getting a call from an NFL team on draft night is supposed to be the happiest moment of a young football player’s life, but getting a second call mere moments later to be informed you’re embarrassing yourself and your new team? Not so much, just ask Rob Gronkowski.
Gronkowski, largely regarded as the GOAT of tight ends (at least until that pesky Travis Kelce came along to make it debatable), managed to turn a special life moment into a harsh reality check and foreshadowing of what life under Patriots coach Bill Belichick would be like.
But what else would you expect from a guy equally known for highlight reel touchdown catches as he was for his meme Tide Pod Challenge public service announcement?
Gronkowski admitted on Apple TV’s documentary The Dynasty: New England Patriots that he got a slap on the wrist from the team just a few minutes after being drafted.
When his name was called as the 42nd pick in the 2010 NFL Draft, Rob Gronkowski had a very Gronk-ish on stage celebration with his family, excitedly grunting and jumping in a huddle after his name was called.
Shortly thereafter, he got another call from the Patriots.
“They said, ‘Hey, Rob. You can get off the stage now,'” Gronkowski admitted in the documentary. “‘Enough is enough.'”
“And I’m sitting there like, ‘Wow, I’m already in trouble! It’s been five minutes since I’ve been on the Patriots and I’m already in trouble!'” Gronk continued.
Of course, Gronk went on to ingratiate himself to Belichick, Robert Kraft, Tom Brady and Patriots fans everywhere over his nine seasons of exceptional play. And it’s not like Belichick, Kraft and Brady haven’t had their own cringe moments of humiliation over their careers in Foxboro.
But somehow Rob Gronkowski seems to take the most heat in that department. One need only watch a few minutes of the Roast of Tom Brady on Netflix for proof.
At least Rob Gronkowski has a sense of humor about his fallibility. His utter lack of self-consciousness and his ability to brush things off are probably part of what made him the phenomenal football player that he was. The Patriots learned to take the good with the bad and it paid off — with Gronk helping them win three of their record six Super Bowls. But he sure learned a lesson in moderation and decorum that first night of being a Patriot.
