Rob Gronkowski Tells Julian Edelman How Tom Brady Shocked Him During Rookie Year: “This Guy Already Knows My Name”

Tom Brady is a living legend. He has been for essentially the entire 21st century. Most football fans would be starstruck at the sight of him. Some of Brady’s teammates, including Rob Gronkowski and Julian Edelman, went through the same experience when meeting him for the first time.

The Pats’ receiving duo recently spoke about their introductions to Brady during the Dudes on Dudes podcast. Both were caught off guard almost instantly because Brady already knew who they were.

Gronkowski, a second-round pick (No. 42 overall) in the 2010 NFL Draft, recalled his initial chat with Brady first.

“I’m in the training room; I was getting my ankles taped. And he just walks up to me. He goes, ‘Hey, Rob. I’m Tom Brady.’ And I was like, ‘wow, this guy already knows my name.'” 

Edelman revealed his earliest encounter with Brady resembled Gronkowski’s. He added that he walked away from it with a similar giddy feeling.

“When you’re a rookie, you get in there before the vets reported. I had a big book… [and] was going to my meeting. I’m running through, and he walks through the door. I look at him, [and] I drop my book. I’m like, ‘oh shit, this dude’s taller than I thought.’ And he goes, ‘Hey, I’m Tom.’ I go, ‘Jules,’ [and hold out my hand]. He goes, ‘I know.’ I felt the same way you felt.” 

Brady’s knowledge of his new teammates’ names sounds simple. To an extent, it may be. But the smallest actions can have the largest consequences.

By showing Gronkowski and Edelman, who went No. 232 overall (seventh round) in the 2009 NFL Draft, that he thought of them as humans first and players second, Brady immediately gained their respect. That, in turn, galvanized them as individuals and a collective. So, when they saw Brady doing everything he could to win, they were inspired to do the same.

As you know, Brady’s efforts bore tremendous fruit. The three-time MVP won three Lombardi Trophies in Foxborough with Gronkowski and Edelman by his side. Gronkowski also joined him for his Super Bowl LV victory as a Tampa Bay Buccaneer.  That triumph, in his debut campaign with the Bucs, may justify the effectiveness of his methods even more than his two-decade run for New England.

You can catch Brady, Gronkowski, and Edelman in various capacities for FOX’s NFL coverage this upcoming season.