The New England Patriots’ fun-loving, touchdown-spiking tight end announced Sunday that he is retiring from the NFL after nine mostly dominant, Super Bowl-filled seasons. It led him to hint at retirement following New England’s Super Bowl loss to the Philadelphia Eagles to end the 2017 season and again last month after the Patriots’ Super Bowl win over the Los Angeles Rams. Though he won’t have the longevity of some of his contemporaries at tight end, Gronkowski is expected to get strong consideration for the Pro Football Hall of Fame when eligible. But at times he looked like a shell of himself during the Patriots’ Super Bowl run this past season. His 12 career post-season touchdown receptions are the most by a tight end in NFL playoff history.

Source: National Post March 24, 2019 22:27 UTC