Rob Gronkowski addressed one of the wildest rumors about his controversial former teammate Aaron Hernandez.

During a Tuesday, May 20, appearance on the “Bussin’ With the Boys” podcast, Gronkowski, 36, was asked by former NFL offensive lineman Taylor Lewan about a story that Hernandez would be “in the team meeting room beating off and doing crazy s***.”

“That’s a possibility, that one,” Gronkowski said with an awkward laugh.

He added, “I may or may not have seen it live. I’m not going to confirm nor deny.”

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Gronkowski and Hernandez were both tight ends on the New England Patriots from 2010 to 2012. 

“I love crazy s***, though,” Gronkowski added, “I didn’t mind things like that. I was like, ‘Wow, that was pretty epic.’ I was a wild man myself. Nothing fazed me.”

In April 2015, Hernandez was found guilty of murder in the first degree in the 2013 killing of his friend Odin Lloyd. 

Two years later, Hernandez died by suicide in his prison cell at the Souza-Baranowski Correctional Center in Lancaster, Massachusetts. He was 27 years old. 

“I didn’t see it going to the level that it went to,” Gronkowski said of Hernandez’s troubles. “I didn’t see that happening. That was a surprise. It was a surprise to everyone because you would never expect anyone, especially in that position, to have it go to the level that it went to.”

Gronkowski continued, “I didn’t know it was that bad. I knew that there was definitely some wild sides to him.”

Hernandez’s story was the subject of a 2020 Netflix documentary, Killer Inside: The Mind of Aaron Hernandez, and FX’s dramatized series American Sports Story in September 2024. 

Gronkowski argued that the media representations of Hernandez were a mixed bag. 

“With everything coming out, there’s some that I would say is true in the documentaries that come out,” he explained. “There’s some that’s probably exaggerated a little bit. But there’s some that’s not exaggerated at all, either.”

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Gronkowski and Hernandez were both selected in the 2010 NFL Draft, and Gronkowski recalled Hernandez’s football prowess during their rookie season. 

“That guy knew the plays inside and out, the run game and pass game, in like the first two weeks of being in New England” Gronwkowski said. “I struggled with it all the way until like Week 8.”

Gronkowski added, “It’s unfortunate what happened because the talent was just through the roof, man.”

If you or someone you know is struggling with suicidal thoughts, please contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255.