Rob Gronkowski is retiring from the NFL at the age of 29, but his decision has come at the absolute perfect time for the most Gronk of all reasons.
The New England Patriots tight end announced his retirement on Sunday in a lengthy Instagram post after nine career seasons, five Pro Bowl selections, and three Super Bowl rings. As NFL.com’s Graham Barfield noted, Gronkowski walks away from football as the all-time leader at his position in touchdowns per game, among other stats. He racked up 79 scores over 115 career contests, coming out to a touchdowns per game figure of … 0.69.
Rob Gronkowski retires as the all-time leader among TEs in…
• Yards per game (68.3)
• TDs per game (0.69)
• Yards per target (9.9 – since 1992)Gronk also ranks 8th-best in receptions per game (4.5) and 4th-best in YPR (15.1).
— Graham Barfield (@GrahamBarfield) March 24, 2019
Gronkowski has been very open about his love for the number 69 over the years and even achieved another 69-themed statistical feat a little while back. He entered the 2018 campaign with 76 touchdowns in 102 games played (0.74 a contest), but his three scores in 13 games got him to the magic number.
You will have a hard time convincing us that such a poetic and perfectly Gronk ending did not at all factor into the decision to hang up his cleats.
