Rob Gronkowski promotes CBD, hints about possible NFL return

Former New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski announced at a news conference Tuesday that he is becoming an advocate for CBD and partnering with a company that produces CBD pain products.

He said he walked away from football because he had to give his body a chance to recover. And CBD pain products, specifically Abacus Health Products, have helped him get healthy.

At the news conference, he was asked several times about whether he was coming back to professional football and the Patriots.

“I want to be clear to my fans,” he said about his retirement. “I needed to recover. I was not in a good place. Football was bringing me down, and I didn’t like it. I was losing that joy in life.”

He got choked up and continued: “I was fighting through it. I knew what I signed up for, I knew what I was fighting through and I knew I just had to fix myself.

“I needed to walk away cause I needed to do what was best for myself at that moment. I truly needed to be selfish for once in my life and walk away.”

After more than a decade of living with pain, I started using @cbdmedic_pharma products for recovery and I was blown away. So proud to partner with these guys https://t.co/Re8r1b6MXq

— Rob Gronkowski (@RobGronkowski) August 27, 2019

After another question about coming back to football, Gronkowski didn’t completely rule it out, but did said it wouldn’t happen soon.

“But as of right now, that is not the case. It could be the case in six months, it could be the case in two years. … But I truly don’t see it in the foreseeable future, in like a week or a month.”

The Woodland Hills product, 30, said that while he was playing, he dealt with a lot of pain, but now he’s in good health thanks in part to a CBD treatment. He said he happy with this new chapter in his life.

But could he possibly come back?

“Physically, I’ll be ready. I could play right now if I wanted to play. Hands down,” he added. “Physically-wise, I could do it. Mentally-wise, desire-wise, it’s not there. My mind, my soul keeps telling me ‘you need more time off.’ ”

Gronkowski retired from football in March. He played nine seasons with the Pats, a career that included five Pro Bowls and three Super Bowl titles, but suffered many injuries.

He has partnered with Abacus Health Products, maker of CBDMEDIC Topical Pain Products, and is advocating for players in all the major sports league to be allowed to use these products for pain relief.

Rob Gronkowski is making his big, mysterious announcement https://t.co/py4rWZa8I3

— WCVB-TV Boston (@WCVB) August 27, 2019