FOXBOROUGH, Mass — Even in practice, Rob Gronkowski had to do the most when it came to his touchdown celebrations.
And one of his all-time favorite moments came with a little help from legendary Patriots wide receiver Wes Welker and a package sent to him that included a Staples button during his second year. The tight end would continuously click the button, which would say, "That was easy," especially before a red zone practice.
Gronkowski took inspiration from Terrell Owens' iconic Sharpie celebration after he caught a 37-yard touchdown pass from Jeff Garcia over Seahawks cornerback Shawn Springs, in which he pulled a pen out of his sock, autographing the ball and handing it back to his financial adviser, Greg Eastman.
So, before practice, the
tight end went to Welker and asked if he would "dare me to bring the Staples button out after I score a touchdown." Welker's response was as expected: "I dare you to do that. You're stupid if you don't do that."
So, Gronkowski went out there and was having himself a day, recording three touchdowns in a row, but on the final one, he caught the ball a little too far away from the end zone where he had hidden the Staples button. But, another red zone play was called, and he managed to snag the ball, getting his feet down just a few steps in front of the goalpost. In that moment, he only had one thought: "Yeah baby, this is it."
"So I grab the Staples button, starting hitting it. 'That was easy. That was easy," he recalled. "Coach Belichick starts shaking his head, getting all pissed off, and no one knew what to do because no one's even seen those antics before, but no one could say a word because I was absolutely balling that practice and balling in games too."
"So that was one of the best moments, and Wes couldn't believe I pulled it off either," he concluded. "I would say that story lives forever."
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This article originally appeared on Patriots Wire: Rob Gronkowski reveals Staples button prank that irked Bill Belichick
