Gronk reached out to Bucs about potential return, opted to stay retired

Former NFL tight end Rob Gronkowski discussed a potential comeback with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers last month, head coach Todd Bowles told Rick Stroud of The Tampa Bay Times.

"It was more of a conversation than anything else," Bowles said. "Usually, when you have to think about playing, you probably don’t want to play. When it’s just a discussion, I didn’t think much of it at the time."

However, Gronkowski elected not to come out of retirement following the talks. One possibility discussed included adding the iconic tight end to the practice squad to give him time to get up to speed, Stroud notes.

The 33-year-old decided to hang up his cleats in June after collecting four Super Bowl championships over an 11-year career spent with the Bucs and New England Patriots. Gronkowski reiterated this past offseason that he was done with football amid speculation that he could return during the 2022 campaign.

Chatter grew about a possible comeback earlier this week when Gronkowski shared that he was "bored" on Twitter. He later explained that the tweet was to announce a business venture.

Tom Brady, who had been Gronkowski's quarterback throughout his career, has led the Bucs to a 6-8 showing this season. Tampa Bay ranks first in the NFC South despite its sub-.500 record.