Rob Gronkowski is known for his carefree, often silly takes. Over the years, he’s also been the protagonist in some wild stories, from showing up drunk to a pre-draft interview with Bill Belichick to draining his bank account for a backyard hot tub.
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Gronk brought that same energy onto the latest episode of Dudes on Dudes. What began as a simple history lesson quickly spiraled into one of the funniest exchanges he and Julian Edelman have had on the podcast. The two former Patriots stars were discussing NFL history when Gronkowski pulled out an old nugget from World War II.
“Back in World War II, they combined the Steelers with… Oh, what team was it again? Oh, with the Eagles. I think they were called, like, the Steagals,” said Gronk. Edelman confirmed it with a chuckle: “The Steagals. What a combination.” This was all Gronk needed to launch into one of his trademark riffs.
“So maybe if World War IV happens…” he began, before his co-host interrupted to correct him: “[World War] Three.”
The minor blip didn’t stop Gronk. He pressed on, shifting straight into his fantasy-narration mode: “The Bills and Detroit are going to combine, since they’re both bordering with Canada. They’ll be like, ‘Oh, that’s easy.’ We can have a strong border. Let’s create the Bions and win the Super Bowl,” he said.
Edelman, by this point, understood that Gronk was in his element. So he ran with the bit, imagining the Bills and Lions facing each other in the big game.
“That would be like a Canadian-ish type Super Bowl,” added Edelman, laughing, before Gronkowski randomly pivoted into a Roger Goodell-inspired punchline: “Roger Goodell’s brain will go off with an idea. Oh my gosh, now we can have a team in Canada and a salary cap can keep going up.”
From there, the two jokingly mapped out a global NFL roadmap: “Europe… the Europe,” Edelman exclaimed, before Gronk added, “And then Australia.”
Soon it was Asia, Japan, and finally, the tundra. “Antarctica,” Rob Gronkowski blurted out, as Julian Edelman immediately tagged the name: “The Ice Bowl.”
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Random and hilarious, fans couldn’t stop commenting on the absurdity of the conversation. “That CTE [is] going crazy RN,” joked one. “The CTE was strong in this one, lol,” said another.
Most, however, couldn’t get over Gronkowski casually name-dropping World War IV. “WW4 [skull emoji],” commented a fan. “The calm correction of Gronk. ‘3, we gotta go for a third,’ that’s love,” sarcastically chimed in another.
While the exchange was pure comedy, it also wasn’t as random as it seemed. Gronkowski has previously touched on NFL expansion seriously, naming Salt Lake City, San Antonio, Oakland, San Diego, Toronto, Montreal, London, and Mexico City as potential future homes.
Gronk had even singled out Mexico City as his favorite, citing its fan base and the time he enjoyed filming a Spanish-language commercial there. So, while this latest Dudes on Dudes segment was clearly tongue-in-cheek, it also underlined Gronk’s unique role in these conversations.
Gronkowski can deliver laughs about “World War IV” and Canadian “Bions.” But he also recognizes the real momentum the league’s global ambitions could bring forth.
