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Rob Gronkowski became a living legend with the New England Patriots, but he pictured himself playing elsewhere in the NFL. After nearly 10 years after being selected by the Patriots, Gronkowski revealed that he was ‘praying' that the Arizona Cardinals would draft him in 2010.
“I loved being in the state of Arizona … I was praying that they (the Arizona Cardinals) would take me because I wanted to go there,” Gronkowski said on 98.7 FM Arizona Sports Station’s “Doug & Wolf,” as transcribed by ArizonaSports.com. “I felt like they needed a tight end and they brought me in for a little visit.”
In the 2010 NFL Draft, the Cardinals possessed the No. 26 pick in the first round of the draft. Instead of taking Gronkowski, Arizona chose to take Dan Williams, the defensive tackle out of Tennessee.
Williams would play seven seasons in the NFL, five with the Cardinals, before retiring in 2016. It's safe to say that the Cardinals would have considered Gronkowski more if they knew what they know now. However, Gronkowski also retired, but not until after the 2018 season.
During his collegiate career, Gronkowski attended the University of Arizona. Therefore, he was already acquainted with the community. Plus, as Gronkowski noted, he loved the state of Arizona while he was in college.
As a result of passing on Gronkowski, the Cardinals missed out on 521 receptions, 7,861 yards, and 79 touchdowns. Of course, there is the chance that Gronkowski would've never developed into the player he was if he didn't land with the Patriots. Nevertheless, Arizona is still kicking themselves over not draft Gronkowski in 2010.
