Why Tom Brady once threatened to never pass to Rob Gronkowski

Before Rob Gronkowski became one of the greatest tight ends in NFL history, he was a rookie with the New England Patriots trying to impress quarterback Tom Brady ahead of the 2010 season.

Gronkowski recently appeared on the "Games with Names" podcast, which is hosted by former teammate Julian Edelman. In it, Gronkowski explained how he once let Brady down as a first-year pro.

"I remember I ran a flag route and I ran inside the guy instead of getting outside of him and he flipped out on me in the meeting after the practice and told me he’s never going to throw me the ball again," Gronkowski recalled about an interaction he had with Brady, as shared by Nick O'Malley of MassLive.

Of course, everything worked out quite well for everyone involved. Gronkowski earned three Super Bowl rings playing alongside Brady with the Patriots, and the retired tight end hoisted the Vince Lombardi Trophy for a fourth time after he joined Brady with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers ahead of the 2020 campaign.

Edelman previously mentioned how he "went home and cried" after Brady gave him an earful as a rookie.

"He came up to me, and he goes, 'Hey, if I yell at you, that means I like you,'" Edelman said about Brady during his chat with Gronkowski. "I was like, 'Well, you must really love me then.'"

Gronkowski was also well "liked" by Brady during his early days as a pro.

"If he gets on you, he sees potential in you," Gronkowski said about the seven-time Super Bowl champion. "That’s why he got on your a-- all the time. He got on my a-- all the time. I didn’t really like him my rookie year. I mean, he was just getting on my case, just non-stop, and it was kind of mind-(expletive) me so much."

One wonders how much of this side of Brady's personality fans will experience once he begins serving as Fox's lead NFL analyst this coming season. Brady may not bring play-by-play announcer Kevin Burkhardt to tears but should have plenty to say about what quarterbacks and other players do wrong during games.