Support NeoGAF

[Jooxed]

Rob Gronkowski Signs With WWE, Will Debut on Next Week's 'SmackDown' (Exclusive)

He's scheduled to appear at next month's WrestleMania 36 in Tampa

www.thewrap.com

Former New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski has officially signed with WWE, an insider told TheWrap exclusively. The ex-NFL great is set to debut one week from Friday on the March 20 episode of Fox’s “SmackDown.”

Gronk is also due to appear at April 5’s WrestleMania 36 in Tampa, Fla., the insider told TheWrap. Current plans call for that appearance to be part of a build-up to a future match. In other words, the three-time Super Bowl champion will not have a match at the Super Bowl of professional wrestling — this year, at least.

Gronk retired from the NFL just under one year ago. WWE, which has suffered Nielsen ratings declines and posted lackluster financial results over recent quarters, has courted Gronkowski since then. Vince McMahon’s pro-wrestling organization has been seeking more mainstream-crossover appeal, which Gronk certainly has to offer.

 

[Cleared_Hot]

This fits him well he's a real character, pretty funny and likeable guy. Smart move to go here and probably branch off into movies eventually

 

[V2Tommy]

Yes, Vince, every football fan will now watch your show and you'll make your second billion dollars.

 

[Hinedorf]

All the more reason to watch AEW, it's either NFL or UFC that some unfit performer will come in and hold the show hostage for a couple weeks before the thrill of something new and mediocre dries up and they have to go back to the well of all the wrestlers they just put on the back burner for gimmick talent.

Hopefully Gronk gets a 1 time Wrestlemania match so he can disappear quickly. Dude is charismatic and entertaining but Wrestling requires brains, not sure Gronk understands how to perform as an entertainer versus being entertaining by doing dumb shit naturally.

 

[ScarletSpider]

.

 

[DESTROYA]

All the more reason to watch AEW, it's either NFL or UFC that some unfit performer will come in and hold the show hostage for a couple weeks before the thrill of something new and mediocre dries up and they have to go back to the well of all the wrestlers they just put on the back burner for gimmick talent.

Hopefully Gronk gets a 1 time Wrestlemania match so he can disappear quickly. Dude is charismatic and entertaining but Wrestling requires brains, not sure Gronk understands how to perform as an entertainer versus being entertaining by doing dumb shit naturally.

He’s not as dumb as he seems, I mean he learned the Patriots playbook which is notoriously difficult to pick up if you don’thave the brain power to grasp.
Yeah he‘s a big goofball but overall a pretty likable personality.
Good luck Gronk.

 

[Hinedorf]

how many games did your team lose to the pats

And then my team divorced me....

 

[NickFire]

I'll be interested to see if he can transform from a guest to actual wrestler (who can cut a decent promo as well). I'm not counting on it for sure, but he does have a passion for wrestling, physical gifts, and some charisma.

 

[Jooxed]

And then my team divorced me....

As a Buffalo fan me too.

 

[EverydayBeast]

10 Former NFL Players Who Became WWE Superstars

 

[deafmedal]

10 Former NFL Players Who Became WWE Superstars

Pillman and Vader

 

[chitzy]

WWE is complete crap nowadays. At wrestling's peak in the 90s, the fan base was made up of drunk frat boys and rednecks who wanted to get rowdy and watch grown men fake beat the shit out of each other. In current year, the fan base is basically a cross-section of Resetera posters who have severely unhealthy emotional attachments to certain wrestlers and like to throw temper tantrums on the internet when the result of the fake wrestling match doesn't go the way they want it to. Also, they ramped up the exposure of the women wrestlers big time, and most of them aren't even hot these days. It's truly horrifying what's become of the product.