Patriots Considered Monster Trade That Would Have Changed History

A big name in the latter years of the New England Patriots' dynasty was Rob Gronkowski, who established himself as one of the greatest tight ends in NFL history after being selected in the second round of the 2010 NFL Draft.

Gronkowski made five Pro Bowl appearances while earning four First-Team All-Pro selections throughout his nine-year stay with the Patriots, helping New England win a pair of Super Bowl championships. He would have won a trio of rings with the Pats had it not been for a chest injury that sidelined him for the back half of 2016.

The University of Arizona prospect was an elite pick when he entered the draft a decade and a half ago, so there was a chance that he wouldn't fall to the Patriots in Round 2. Gronkowski recently revealed a major nugget of information during an episode of the Dudes on Dudes podcast, noting that New England was prepared to trade for Greg Olsen had it not drafted him.

“I also heard through a grapevine that if I didn’t get drafted to the New England Patriots, Greg Olsen was going to get traded that day for a draft pick to New England Patriots,” Gronkowski said. “Because the Patriots were looking for a tight end.”

Olsen was a budding star at the time and eventually made three straight trips to the Pro Bowl with the Carolina Panthers between 2014 and 2016. He began his career with the Chicago Bears in 2007 and spent four seasons with the Bears before being dealt to the Panthers.

The Pats surely would have been successful with Olsen, as well. He was a top-flight weapon during his heyday, and Tom Brady surely would have enjoyed throwing to him. But was Olsen as dominant as Gronkowski? Absolutely not.

Fortunately, the Patriots were able to get their hands on Gronkowski, and the rest is history.