Count Rob Gronkowski as a real part of individuals who trust Julian Edelman’s NFL career may not really be finished.
Edelman reported his retirement on Monday by means of online media, considering it “hell of a run.” The 34-year-old wide collector refered to a knee injury as his justification retirement.
“Due to an injury last year, I’ll be making my official announcement of my retirement from football,” Edelman said. “It was a hard decision, but the right decision for me and my family. And I’m honored and so proud to be retiring a Patriot.”
NFL.com’s Ian Rapaport offered some extra data on Tuesday.
“[Edelman] actually thought he was going to come back late in the season after having surgery — just was not able to do it,” Rapaport said. “Tried to practice, had a little bit of a setback, was not on the field again and at that point, it became very clear to the people close to Julian Edelman that this knee injury was troublesome and potentially career-ending.”
On Monday evening, be that as it may, Gronkowski — who was spotted at LAX by TMZ — offered an different opinion. Inquired as to whether Edelman may join the unit of previous Patriots stars in Tampa Bay, where Gronkowski and Tom Brady won the Super Bowl in February, Gronkowski laughed.
“69% chance,” he quipped, breaking out his favorite number.
Gronkowski was inquired as to why that number explicitly (presumably, the examiner knew the appropriate answer).
“You asked if there’s a chance. I gave you a number,” Gronkowski said.
“He’ll be back,” Gronkowski added.
Gronkowski added that he accepts there’s a “incredible possibility” Edelman could be a Hall of Famer.
“Julian was the ultimate competitor, man,” Gronkowski said. “Nothing but huge props to Julian man, he was a great teammate. … You’ve got to give it to Jules, he gave it his all his whole career and he was a wonderful teammate. I had a lot of good times with him, and he’s going to keep on thriving.”
