The Las Vegas Raiders CEO Mark Davis has said that he didn’t remember about the deal that almost brought Tom Brady and Rob Gronkowski to the team in 2020.
Davis was asked via the Review-Journal about UFC president Dana White’s claims regarding the former helped arrange a deal to convince Brady and Gronkowski to join the Raiders instead of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He heard about it, but all he remembered was that Brody went to join the Buccaneers.
“I heard about [White’s comments],” Davis said. “That was what, two to three years ago or something? I don’t know. Talk to Dana. I remember that Tom Brady went to Tampa Bay. That’s basically what I remember.
“I have no idea,” Davis said. “Dana has the stories. I love Dana. He is a great, great promoter. Why would this make me upset? I was busy watching [the Raiders beat the Dolphins 15-13] and the basketball game [Saturday].”
Tom Brady hung out with Raiders owner Mark Davis at the Aces game on Tuesday … a sight that would be a lot more frequent had the NFL superstar's free agency gone differently in 2020. https://t.co/wAln9MwyRK
— TMZ (@TMZ) June 2, 2022
The deal was discussed in early 2020 when Brady was entering free agency and intended to leave New England. Meanwhile, Gronkowski still had an ongoing contract with the New England Patriots at the time, despite having been retired for a year.
Currently, the Raiders are gearing to the 2022 season with Derek Carr under center and Josh McDaniels as the new head coach.
White’s testimony
White spoke on the UFC with the Gronks broadcast on Saturday night during UFC 278 regarding the deal.
He confirmed that he had “worked to put that deal”, which was nearing completion before former coach Jon Gruden decided to bail. Gronkowski himself confirmed White’s testimony.
“I worked to put that deal together for Brady and Gronk to come to the Raiders,” White said.
“And it was almost a done deal and, at the last minute, Gruden blew the deal up and said that he didn’t want ’em. All hell broke loose, man, it was crazy.”
Dana White says Brady and Gronk ➡️ Raiders "was almost a done deal." 😳 #UFC278 pic.twitter.com/buWEXxi5Ho
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) August 21, 2022
There was a plan to reunite Brady and Gronk with the Raiders, but with Gruden called off the deal, the plan did not make it through as well.
“Brady was already looking at houses and it wasn’t being said yet that Gronk was coming. So Las Vegas would have had Brady and Gronk the year that the [Buccaneers] won the Super Bowl, except Gruden blew the deal up,” Davis said.
“And there’s so much story that goes along with this behind the scenes. And I was never going to tell that story until Gronk just said it.”
Brady, Gronkowski’s experience with Buccaneers
Although Brady was unhappy with the deal was off, he was reportedly content with him being with the Buccaneers at this point.
Brady, 45, is currently preparing for his third year with the Buccaneers this season. The team has been reported to have the second-best odds on BetMGM to win the Super Bowl. Last year, they won the Super Bowl with Bruce Arians as the head coach in February.
Tom Brady is back in the building and is expected to practice today.
— JennaLaineESPN (@JennaLaineESPN) August 22, 2022
Meanwhile, Gronkowski said that he was also happy ending up with the Buccaneers.
“I’m glad it did not go through,” Gronkowski said. “It all worked out for the best, man. I’m glad we went to Tampa, man. It just worked out. I love that place.”
He has been retired again since June while Brady had announced his own intention to retire in February. However, it didn’t last very long since he eventually declared that he would return to the Buccaneers following his absence for the most time of preseason. The team is set to play in the first week against the Dallas Cowboys on September 11.