NFL-Gronkowski retires for second time in his career

Cheers to what's next, maybe sailing the seas." Gronkowski finishes his career as the tight end with the most career touchdowns in post-season history (15) and is a shoo-in for the Pro Football Hall of Fame. In all, Gronkowski played 11 seasons with the Patriots and Buccaneers, amassing 621 receptions for 9,286 yards and 92 touchdowns in the regular season.

Four-times Super Bowl champion Rob Gronkowski retired for a second time on Tuesday following his two-year stint with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, bringing the curtain down on an elite career where the tight end became one of the sport's greats.

Gronkowski, who first retired in 2019 after winning the Super Bowl three times with the New England Patriots, came out of retirement in 2020 to reunite with long-time team mate Tom Brady. The duo eventually helped the Buccaneers win the Super Bowl last year, with Gronkowski scoring two touchdowns as the Florida-based team ended an 18-year drought.

"I will now be going back into my retirement home, walking away from football again with my head held high knowing I gave it everything I had, good or bad, every time I stepped out on the field," Gronkowski, 33, wrote on Twitter https://twitter.com/RobGronkowski/status/1539314500280537089. "The friendships and relationships I have made will last forever, and I appreciate every single one of my team mates and coaches for giving everything they had as well.

"From retirement, back to football and winning another championship and now back to chilling out, thank you to all... Cheers to what's next, maybe sailing the seas." Gronkowski finishes his career as the tight end with the most career touchdowns in post-season history (15) and is a shoo-in for the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

In all, Gronkowski played 11 seasons with the Patriots and Buccaneers, amassing 621 receptions for 9,286 yards and 92 touchdowns in the regular season. In the post-season, he had 98 receptions for 1,389 yards and 15 touchdowns.