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#1 Rob Gronkowski didn't last long in WWE
When NFL star Rob Gronkowski - better known as "Gronk" - announced that he was retiring from professional football in April 2019, he made it known that one of his new goals was to compete in WWE.
WWE has always enjoyed having mainstream celebrities as part of its product, and the then-New England Patriots Tight End certainly enjoyed that kind of profile.
Gronkowski, in fact, had already made an appearance in WWE when he helped his friend Mojo Rawley win the Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal at WrestleMania 33 in 2017.
This time, though, Gronkowski insisted that he wanted to make his own mark in sports entertainment. Officially signing with WWE in March 2020, Gronk was announced as the Guest Host of WrestleMania 36.
Fans expected Gronkowsi to do far more than simply serve as a host for WWE, though.
Plans were put in place for the 31-year-old to work some matches later in the year for WWE, with SummerSlam being the potential home for one of these bouts. However, Gronkowski quickly realized during the filming of WrestleMania 36 that the WWE environment might not be for him.
Booked to win the 24/7 Championship from Rawley after jumping off of a platform on to a large group of bodies (who were there for his safety), Gronk held up the taping of WrestleMania for quite some time as he was nervous about doing the dive.
Gronkowsi did eventually go through with the stunt and win the championship, but would not be seen inside a WWE arena again.
Apparently based on his limited time with WWE during the WrestleMania tapings, Gronk was hesitant to return to the company. Just a few short weeks after WrestleMania aired, it was announced that Gronkowski had agreed to return to the NFL with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, joining up with former New England teammate Tom Brady.
Still the 24/7 Champion at this point, WWE had to send a camera crew out to film Gronkowski losing the title to R-Truth, effectively writing him off of television on the June 1 episode of RAW.
It was later announced that Gronk had requested his release from WWE, ending a spell with the company that lasted less than three months and saw him make just a handful of appearances.
For Gronkowski, however, his decision to return to the NFL with the Buccaneers proved to be a great one. Scoring two touchdowns, Gronk helped his new franchise defeat the Kansas City Chiefs 31-9 at Super Bowl LV this past Sunday - a win that saw him collect his fourth career Super Bowl ring.
Bayley gives us a HUGE update on a top Superstar's upcoming return RIGHT HERE.
