We now know what the future of Rob Gronkowski holds for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Here is where he stands in the Buccaneers’ past of tight ends.
When it comes to his football future, Rob Gronkowski has finally decided on what he wants to do. Obviously, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers would have loved to have Gronk back, but they have done a great job this offseason preparing for life without him.
As far as the past goes, now that the retirement is official, we know where Gronk ranks based on his past with the Bucs as it relates to the other great tight ends in the history of the franchise. Here are the top five tight ends to put on a Buccaneers’ uniform.
Number five Buccaneers tight end: Ron Hall (1987-1993)
Ron Hall had the misfortune of playing during the heyday of the “Suckaneers” or the “Yucks” era of Tampa Bay football. You see kids after head coach John McKay was able to make the legendarily putrid expansion Bucs a winner, then-owner Hugh Culverhouse refused to pay quarterback Doug Williams what he wanted, and there went the franchise. That was after the 1982 season. Fans wouldn’t see light at the end of the tunnel until Tony Dungy arrived in 1996.
While the roster was essentially a graveyard, they weren’t COMPLETELY devoid of talent. Hall was one such talented player. Sure, his 209 catches for 2,422 yards and ten touchdowns in seven seasons in Tampa Bay won’t get him into the Hall of Fame, but for context, that yardage total is more than Kellen Winslow II.
Hall was at best a bright spot, and at worst a somewhat less-dim spot in an era of Buccaneers football full of darkness. The Bucs have never been known for great tight ends, so his ranking at number five is fair.
Number four Buccaneers tight end: Cameron Brate (2014-Present)
Time for some more zany tight end facts you may not have known about the Buccaneers. Did you know that Cameron Brate is one touchdown away from tying Jimmie Giles for the most in franchise history at tight end?
Should Brate catch his 34th career touchdown, not only would it tie Giles as we said, but it would also place the two tight ends in a tie for second-most receiving touchdowns in Buccaneers history behind only Mike Evans. Think about that for a second.
Sure, longevity may play a big part in those numbers (his 2,683 yards on 253 catches is good enough for the 17th most in franchise history just above the aforementioned Hall), but that’s painting this picture with too broad of a brush.
Brate’s best ability has been his availability, and if that’s truly the best ability a player can have as these streets would make you believe, then the ol’ reliable Ivy Leaguer should absolutely be considered one of the greatest tight ends the Buccaneers have ever had.
Despite the numbers though, it’s hard to rank Brate any higher on this list considering that he was never really considered “the guy” as it pertains to being the starting tight end except for a season or two. When it comes to these kinds of lists, sometimes it’s necessary to nitpick, and that’s just what we’re going to have to do here.
This writer has always been a HUGE fan of Brate, so this is as hard on yours truly as anyone. That said, with Gronk now retired, then Brate can easily skyrocket up the rankings with a strong season, which he is more than capable of.
Number three Buccaneers tight end: Dave Moore (1992-2001, 2004-2006)
Time for your trivia question of the day to impress your friends at the next local Quizzo. Who is the only other tight end other than Jimmie Giles to be voted to a Pro Bowl? We’ll give you a minute…
Time’s up.
If your answered Dave Moore then congratulations you’re our big winner and should probably be the recipient of a new car all things considered. Granted, Moore’s Pro Bowl nod in 2006 was technically as a long-snapper, but that just makes the trivia feat all the MOORE (lololol) impressive to be fair.
Anyway, the fact of the matter is that Moore was not just a long-snapper for the Bucs. He was also a starting tight end and a very good one at that. Throughout his career in Tampa Bay, Moore caught 184 balls for 1805 yards. For someone who has been around for so long, you’d think his numbers would be gaudier.
What set Moore apart though was his touchdowns. Moore’s 24 touchdowns in a Buccaneers uniform is good enough for ninth in franchise history, ahead of Bruce Hill Vincent Jackson, and Keyshawn Johnson in that order. That’s nothing to sneeze at.
While it may be a little unfair to some that Moore comes in ranked one spot higher than Brate, the fact of the matter is Moore was the undisputed starting tight end for the Buccaneers for four straight years, and that was after playing for six in Tampa Bay before that.
It’s also a bit of a crime Moore left right before the 2002 Super Bowl season, and by the time he came back for the second go-around, he wasn’t used in nearly the same way he was. We’ll throw him a bone here.
Number two Buccaneers tight end: Rob Gronkowski (2020-2021)
Coming in at the deuce we finally get to Gronk. With him and Brate on this list, it means that for the new millennium roaring ’20s the Bucs have had two top-five tight ends in franchise history on the roster at the same time. Pretty neat.
Depending on who you ask, Gronkowski very well could be the greatest tight end to ever lace up a pair of football cleats (more on that in a bit). That said, we can’t sit here and pretend that the majority of his art didn’t come as a member of the New England Patriots. Granted, we did recently rank Tom Brady as the greatest quarterback the Buccaneers have ever had, but that’s a different situation considering he changed the success, and relevancy, of the entire franchise.
This isn’t to say Gronk hasn’t been great in a Bucs uniform though. His 13 touchdowns with the Buccaneers is already one behind Keean McCardell, and three more than Ron Hall who we discussed earlier.
Gronk has also been huge for the Buccaneers in the playoffs, catching three more touchdowns in the biggest games. His pair of touchdown grabs in Super Bowl LV were the first two of the game and were a glimpse into what shellacking was in store for the Kansas City Chiefs on the game’s biggest stage.
We now know what the future will hold when it comes to Gronkowski and the Buccaneers. What we also know, is that even in retirement his spot on the ranking of past and present Tampa tight ends is secure.
The greatest tight end in Buccaneers history: Jimmie Giles (1978-1986)
This is an absolute slam dunk no-brainer. When asked if he felt that Rob Gronkowski is the greatest tight end of all time, Jimmie Giles simply said “Absolutely not.” His words carry weight considering he is the greatest tight end the Tampa Bay Buccaneers have ever called their own, and it really isn’t particularly close.
Spending eight years with the Buccaneers, all in the soon-to-return creamsicle uniforms, Giles would become fifth all-time in receiving yards for the Buccaneers with 4,300. When the Buccaneers miraculously got to the NFC Championship in 1979, Giles lead the team with 40 catches for 579 yards and seven touchdowns. The next year, Giles led the entire NFL with an average of 18.2 yards per catch. In 1981, Giles had career highs in would help the Bucs return to the playoffs with career highs in receptions (45) and yards (786) helping the Bucs get back to the playoffs.
In today’s NFL, those numbers may make some say “who cares?” However, that’s how the NFL was in those days. Giles is also the only tight end in the history of the franchise to be named a Pro Bowler as an actual tight end, and he was honored with that on four separate occasions.
Say what you will on his opinion of Gronk’s place in the history of the NFL. When it comes to the history of the Bucs though, Jimmie Giles is more than worthy of being called the greatest tight end the Tampa Bay Buccaneers have ever had.