In a move that has seemed inevitable for a while, Rob Gronkowski and WWE have agreed to a contract. Now retired, Gronk is free to partake in more physical endeavors like pro wrestling and this seems like a perfect fit for him, WWE, and his current employer Fox Sports.
For Gronkowski, he’s already been on WWE TV and is a fan. And after he had a active role at WrestleMania 33, being in WWE gives Gronk a reason to be physical and have some fun. For WWE, they’re always looking for well known stars to participate. The latest was Ronda Rousey, who main evented WrestleMania last year. A mainstream star like Gronk is likely to give them a much needed ratings boost. For Fox Sports, they’re interested in not only a ratings boost but the ability to cross promote their other sports properties. Gronkowski is an NFL analyst so that’s an easy transition if he were to appear on SmackDown.
But now that Gronk is going to WWE, what exactly is he going to do?
Gronk can do so many things, so the possibilities are endless. He can do commentary, he can be a manager and deliver promos and depending on his football injuries, he can wrestle. The Wrap gave us a couple clues. They reported that Gronkowski would be on the March 2o episode of SmackDown and at WrestleMania 36. None of this indicates he’ll have a match at WrestleMania but it would help build to a future match.
Honestly, Gronkowski’s frequency of in-ring work is likely tied to what he’s able to physically do. Gronk retired from the NFL at 29 after suffering multiple injuries, including to his back. While WWE can do things to help manage chronic pain, you still get banged up and get hurt. And sometimes, you can be injured. If Gronkowski can get in the ring, which I’m sure he can if he signed a contract, he’ll be in the ring at some point.
The best thing for Gronkowski is for WWE to take it slow. Gronk can be on TV but he’s going to need to train as a wrestler and learn how to work a match before really getting into the ring but there’s no reason he can’t be a great wrestler. As far as how high Gronk can go, I wrote in 2017 that it wasn’t impossible for him to be WWE Champion. And while that seems absurd, the top two titles are being held by part-timers who wrestled 12 matches combined over the past year.
In other words, even if Gronk has to be part time due to his past injuries or because of his Fox Sports duties, he can still be champion.
