"Who the hell would want to play for the Cincinnati Bengals?" ESPN's Stephen A. Smith said less than two years ago.
Well, it sounds like Rob Gronkowski might.
The veteran tight end previously has said Tom Brady is the only quarterback with whom he'd want to play. Gronkowski and Brady played together for nine seasons with the New England Patriots and the past two with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Brady, a seven-time Super Bowl champion, announced his retirement earlier this week. Gronkowski, 32, becomes a free agent in March and has hinted at retirement himself.
But Gronkowski told Autograph NFTs on Tuesday that he'd pick Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow as his QB if he had to pick a new one.
"I kinda like this young buck quarterback. He’s in the Super Bowl now: It’s Joe Burrow, man," Gronkowski said. "I watched him in college. I just love the way he presents himself out on the football field. In the pocket, he’s just so calm and he just slings it out on the field. ... I just love his swag, too. If I had to pick a quarterback, it'd be the young buck Joe Burrow. He's killing it right now in the game."
Burrow appeared last week on the "Let's Go!" SiriusXM podcast Brady co-hosts with Jim Gray and Larry Fitzgerald, and Brady offered the second-year quarterback praise and advice.
LOVE SPORTS? [ Subscribe now for unlimited access to Cincinnati.com ]