Tom Brady is the big story when it comes to the turnaround for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers this season, but Rob Gronkowski’s impact should not be forgotten.
Gronk came out of retirement to join Brady on the Bucs. Though Gronk didn’t blow anyone away with the offensive stats, he still had 45 catches for 623 yards and seven touchdowns.
And according to Bucs GM Jason Licht, Gronk’s presence has been big for the team.
“There’s a lot of talk of what Tom has done for this locker room, and it’s all warranted, but what Gronk has done for this locker room is equally as amazing. He’s just a great teammate and loves life,” Licht said Wednesday.
Licht praised Gronk for his positive energy but also noted how he gets serious when it’s time to be serious.
“He just lifts you up just by being him. He’s funny. We have conversations every day and I look forward to it. I tell my wife, ‘Can’t wait to go talk to Gronk at practice today.’ He’s just being himself. He’s very authentic. He loves the game and when it’s time to be serious, he’s very serious.”
This is exactly what makes Gronk so popular and beloved by fans. He’s not afraid to break out all his moves and put himself out there either, just like he did with his great dance moves after the NFC Championship.
Tom Brady and Rob Gronkowski have teamed up yet again! Treat yourself or a friend with this great Tampa Fiesta shirt. You can buy it here.
One former Pittsburgh Steelers player thinks that it’s time for Ben Roethlisberger to retire.
Ike Taylor, who was a cornerback for the Steelers from 2003-2014 and a longtime teammate of Roethlisberger, said on the radio Thursday that the veteran quarterback is done.
Taylor joined “The PM Team” on 93.7 The Fan in Pittsburgh and was asked if it’s time for Roethlisberger to ride off into the sunset. Taylor said “100 percent.”
Taylor said that Roethlisberger has already done enough great things for the franchise and for him, “it’s the mobility part” that makes him say Big Ben should call it quits.
Roethlisberger used to be somewhat elusive in the pocket but doesn’t have the same mobility now. The soon-to-be 39-year-old still can sling it and threw for 33 touchdowns and 10 interceptions this season despite coming off a significant arm injury.
The Steelers went 12-4 but lost in the playoffs to the Cleveland Browns.
Roethlisberger has a $41.2 million cap hit for next season but plans to restructure his deal to help out the team. Next season might be his last.
Kelly Oubre is just finding his groove for the Golden State Warriors, so this week’s trade rumors are coming at a particularly inopportune time.
Warriors head coach Steve Kerr indicated on Wednesday that he was unhappy that rumors about Oubre were leaked to the media.
“It’s unfortunate,” said Kerr, per Anthony Slater of The Athletic. “Team called us and asked about him. Didn’t even make an offer, asked about Kelly. Next thing it’s online.”
Shams Charania, also of The Athletic, had reported about the Oubre talks. Charania said that the Warriors and the New Orleans Pelicans had discussed a potential deal involving Oubre, the 25-year-old swingman. He did add though that there was no traction as of yet.
Oubre is in his first season in Golden State but will be a free agent in the summer. After a comically terrible start to his Warriors career, he has rebounded to average 12.1 points and 5.7 boards a game on the year.
The former first-round pick Oubre may indeed be a trade chip ahead of the March 25 deadline. But Kerr knows how damaging such rumors can be for player morale, regardless of if anything actually results from them.
Tony Romo offered an extremely bold comment about the Super Bowl LV matchup and what it will mean for Patrick Mahomes.
Mahomes’ Kansas City Chiefs are looking to win the big game for the second consecutive year, but they must beat Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Romo’s bold comment has to do with the value he placed on the game to Mahomes’ career. Romo thinks this is the most important game of Mahomes’ career and explained why.
“This is the biggest game Patrick Mahomes will ever play in for the rest of his career. It’s the only way to catch Tom Brady. He has to win this game. If he loses this game, he cannot catch Tom Brady, in my opinion,” Romo said Thursday.
Romo is the TV analyst for the game, which will air on CBS, so he has a vested interest in hyping up the game. But that doesn’t necessarily mean his seemingly hyperbolic comment is wrong.
Mahomes is 25 and has several years in front of him. He already has one Super Bowl, and he can make it two. Two Super Bowls at 25 would put him within striking range of Brady’s six. But if the Bucs win the game, which would give Brady seven, while taking a year of Mahomes’ prime away, it would likely put Brady out of reach.
It’s hard to all a game the most important of Mahomes’ career when the guy is only 25, but Romo’s logic in this instance makes sense. Given how right Romo was about his November prediction, his comment about Mahomes should not be dismissed.
Bradley Beal’s wife appears to be fanning the flames surrounding the Washington Wizards guard right now.
The Wizards lost their third straight game on Wednesday, falling to New Orleans despite Beal scoring a game-high 47 points. Kamiah Adams-Beal then took to Twitter to post a message that simply read, “Sick of it.”
That led to troves of fans responding with Photoshopped images of Beal wearing the jersey of their respective favorite teams.
Adams then added to the mix on Thursday by tweeting a seemingly applicable quote from Albert Einstein.
Beal, who has been with the Wizards for his entire career, is leading the NBA by a wide margin with 35.4 points a game. But the Wizards are a disgusting 3-11, which is the worst record in the league. That puts them in serious danger of missing the playoffs for the third straight year.
The 27-year-old All-Star Beal is signed through the 2021-22 season. But he looks absolutely miserable in Washington right now, and the rumors about his future probably will not slow down any time soon.
There has been lots of movement on the MLB Hot Stove this week, but Trevor Bauer has yet to choose a team. There is no indication when that might happen, but there is some talk about who will be involved in his bidding.
MLB reporter Jon Heyman tweeted Thursday that the race for Bauer could come down to the New York Mets and Los Angeles Dodgers, unless a mystery team emerges.
A different reporter last week suggested it would be the Mets and Los Angeles’ other baseball team.
The Dodgers are not believed to be interested in a long-term deal for a pitcher and would prefer a shorter-term deal. The Mets would probably have the edge if they were willing to go longer for the 30-year-old ace.
So far, the Mets’ offer for Bauer reportedly is for four years or less, and lower than an annual average of $36 million.
Bauer is the reigning NL Cy Young winner. He posted a 1.73 ERA for the Cincinnati Reds in 2020, striking out 100 in 73 innings.
The Los Angeles Rams’ desire to have a quarterback competition in 2021 has largely been viewed as a signal of disappointment with Jared Goff. It may also be because they simply believe in John Wolford.
According to Jourdan Rodrigue of The Athletic, Rams coach Sean McVay likes a number of Wolford’s attributes, particularly his mobility. McVay likes Wolford’s ability to find throwing lanes, mentally assess the field, and make plays with his legs. Wolford’s ability to move and avoid pressure is another selling point, as McVay likes that it would require defenses to possibly commit extra rushers to account for the quarterback’s mobility.
In addition, McVay clearly feels that his offense became too reliant on a successful run game, and feels that Wolford could potentially allow the team to diversify its gameplan.
In other words, the Rams clearly think Wolford might have what it takes to be a legitimate starter. It certainly sounds like McVay wants a quarterback that can move, which is not something Goff has consistently shown an ability to do.
Wolford looks set to get a real chance to beat Goff, the former No. 1 overall pick, to the Rams’ starting quarterback job. Based on this, perhaps we shouldn’t be shocked if the former undrafted free agent wins it, too.
It took a while, but Adam Wainwright is returning to the team where he belongs.
Wainwright and the St. Louis Cardinals agreed on a 1-year deal worth $8 million, according to Jon Heyman.
The 39-year-old was drafted by the Braves but has only played in the big leagues with the Cardinals after they acquired him in the J.D. Drew trade in 2003.
Wainwright is a 3-time All-Star who has finished top-three in NL Cy Young Award voting four times. Even at 38, he had a very strong season for the Cardinals last year. He went 5-3 with a 3.15 ERA in 65.2 innings.
According to Heyman, the Cardinals would also like to bring back Kolten Wong and Yadier Molina, who are other fan favorites.
Many teams are interested in Houston Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson, but we’re starting to get an idea of which ones are most serious about trying to trade for him.
According to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network, the Carolina Panthers are expected to be “aggressive” in trying to trade for Watson, and are a team to watch as trade talks intensify.
“Don’t sleep on the Carolina Panthers,” Rapoport said, via Kevin Patra of NFL.com. “They are a team that I’m told is going to be aggressive in potentially acquiring Deshaun Watson.”
The Panthers make sense as a possible destination for Watson. The team lacks a long-term solution at quarterback, but they have weapons like Christian McCaffrey and D.J. Moore that could be taken advantage of. They could also offer the No. 8 pick in the NFL Draft as a starting point.
The biggest issue may be whether Watson would want to go to Carolina. The quarterback has a no-trade clause and can essentially choose where he wants to play. We’ve seen a number of different teams Watson would reportedly like to play for, but the Panthers have yet to feature on one of those lists.
This week’s Senior Bowl practices appear to have done a lot of good for one quarterback in particular.
By all indications, Alabama quarterback Mac Jones was very impressive across the entire week of practices, demonstrating strong leadership skills and throwing accuracy. Multiple evaluators on the scene were effusive in their praise for Jones, noting that team evaluators were also impressed.
Even throughout his college career, Jones showed an ability to grow and improve his temperament. His practice success probably won’t come as a surprise to his coaches at Alabama.
Jones had been viewed by many experts as a mid- to late-first round pick prior to this week. He’s likely solidified that at least, and may have put himself in the conversation to go even higher than that.
