Former New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski has not been out of the NFL for long. While there have been no announcements, yet, as to what’s next for the big lug, people have been having fun speculating.
Is he going to act? Will he play in a different football league? Host a podcast? Maybe he’ll become a male stripper or maybe sign on with the WWE and give pro wrestling a try.
One sportsbook is leaning so hard towards the WWE that they have posted odds for Gronk to win the Andre The Giants Battle Royal at Wrestlemania 35. According to the odds BetOnline.ag has given him, he might even win.
- Who Will Win the Andre The Giants Battle Royal at Wrestlemania 35?
o Braun Strowman +100
o Curt Hawkin +1000
o Rob Gronkowski, Lars Sullivan, Andrade, and Velveteen Dream +1600
o Harper, Sami Zayn, and Kevin Owens +2000
o Bray Wyatt, No Way Jose, Mojo Rawley, Mustafa Ali, EC3, Kofi Kingston, and Otis +2500
o Adam Cole and Pete Dunne +4000
o Titus O’Neil, Hulk Hogan, Colin Jost, Michael Che, Rowan, Elias +5000
This would, of course, mean that if you took the odds that the WWE would be his next move that you’d win that bet. But why should anyone think that he would join the WWE so soon after retiring from the NFL? Wrestling is scripted, but those men and women are still incredible athletes. They have been known to suffer some pretty severe injuries from time to time.
If he is tired of being banged up from playing football, the WWE does not sound like the logical next step. But if the money is right and he wants to do it—why not? From what he said in an interview back in 2016 he certainly has more than a passing interest in becoming a wrestler, via Complex:
“My buddy Mojo Rawley, he’s in the WWE….I watch him, and he kind of inspires me to someday maybe get in that ring and be a WWE wrestler. I don’t know if I would want to do it full-time, but I would definitely want to make an appearance in the ring once and jump off the top ropes and give someone an elbow-drop.”
He has already gotten into the ring once, at Wrestlemania 33 where he helped Rawley live the dream and win the Battle Royal that year. But now that he doesn’t have football practice to be concerned about is he ready to join up with the WWE?
The chaos of the Battle Royal would be the perfect way for him to get his feet wet without having to know too many actual wrestling moves. They could probably teach him enough to be safe in the weeks leading up to Wrestlemania 35 (April 7).
Then afterward, he can make a series of promotional appearances during RAW and/or SmackDown until he finishes training. That way, he can build up his persona and character with the audience while learning how to wrestle before having an actual match.