Cardinals among betting favorites as landing spot for TE Rob Gronkowski
Feb 26, 2022, 7:21 PM
TUCSON, ARIZONA - APRIL 24: NFL athlete and University of Arizona Alum, Rob Gronkowski spikes the football in the end-zone while coaching Team Red to victory in the Arizona Spring game at Arizona Stadium on April 24, 2021 in Tucson, Arizona. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
(Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
The Arizona Cardinals are among betting favorites as the next team tight end Rob Gronkowski could play for.
According to Bookies.com, the Cardinals have the fourth-highest odds for landing the future Hall of Famer at +900 (9/1). That metric would turn a $10 put into a $90 profit.
Teams listed ahead of the Cardinals are the Buffalo Bills at 5.5/1 (+550), Green Bay Packers at 6.5/1 (+650) and Tampa Bay Buccaneers at 8/1 (+800).
However, the betting favorite at -125 is that Gronkowski will hang up the cleats, gloves and his helmet for good.
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Gronkowski has never played a down in the NFL without Tom Brady as his quarterback. But while Brady’s retirement might point to Gronkowski doing the same, the tight end has said in the past that he wanted to stay in the same state as his alma mater.
“I loved being in the state of Arizona … I was praying that (the Cardinals would draft) me because I wanted to go there,” the former Arizona Wildcat told 98.7 FM Arizona’s Sports Station in February 2020. “I felt like they needed a tight end and they brought me in for a little visit.”
In two years in Tucson, Gronkowski reeled in 75 receptions for 1,197 yards and 16 touchdowns to go along with a 2008 Las Vegas Bowl victory — Arizona’s first bowl appearance since 1998.
At the time of the 2010 NFL Draft, tight ends Anthony Becht and Stephen Spach were already on the Cardinals’ roster.
“I took a visit there and everything,” Gronkowski said. “I could tell they had no interest in me. I could tell — the people that brought me in, they were just bringing me in to bring me in.”
Becht was released prior to the start of the season, and Spach was rarely used in the passing game on the year, as he played both full back and tight end.
The Cardinals ended up taking defensive lineman Dan Williams No. 26 overall. Gronkowski was taken at No. 42 by the New England Patriots and dominated for a decade.
