Rob Gronkowski got off on completely the wrong foot during his time with the Patriots, most notably with Bill Belichick.Fortunately for the New England great, he has plenty of experience with big names – but his relationship with his legendary head coach did not get off to the best possible start.Gronk’s career with the Patriots got off on the wrong footGettyHe had a nightmare pre-draft interview with the head coach where he fell asleep after being hungover from a wild one the night before.Last year, the retired superstar tight end shared his version of events on Jason Tartick’s Trading Secrets podcast.Rob Gronkowski revealed he was hammered and fell asleep during Patriots interview“This was one of my mistakes,” explained Gronkowski. “I party at the University of Arizona one night and got absolutely hammered. Had to jump on the flight the next day and started this little tour. So I already put myself in the bag. So I’m going on this tour. I’m falling, I’m no sleep, I’m hungover already. I’m visiting all these teams and then I got to New England and I’m (gassed).“So I had the most craziest visit man, my comments I was saying to their questions, I just let it fly,” he went on.“And then they went through the playbook. They drew up some play. It was Billy O’Brien, the offensive coordinator, with the New England Patriots. He drew up a play. He came back and I didn’t know one single thing. My mind was shut off. And I was just like I basically said something like ‘It doesn’t matter. Just throw me the football.“Just like that. And they were just mind-blown.“They were like, ‘This guy is out of hand.’ Then I go upstairs, pass right out right on the floor. I’m so tired and pass right out on the floor while waiting for the next coach to talk to. Passed right out. So my visit was probably the worst visit of all time.“I mean, there was a lot more detail to like how outrageous it was, but we just need a glimpse of it,” he added. “And I walked out. And I said to myself, that team is either going to draft me or that team is either crossing me off the list right now. And so I said it’s either or. And then look what happened.”Gronk admitted he was hungover during his pre-draft interview with the PatriotsX@PatsBuzzBrady and Gronkowski are one of the greatest duos in NFL historyGettyBelichick also shared his side of the story and admitted Gronk didn’t make a very good impression.“Rob was kind of a shot in the dark,” Belichick recalled.“He came up on his pre-draft visit, had a bad visit. We put him in a room, came back and he was asleep on the floor. Didn’t make a very good impression. I brought him, we’re getting ready to meet with the coaches, he fell asleep on the floor.”“We just kind of you know, bet that he would come through, and he certainly did big time,” he added.Belichick and New England clearly saw something in Gronk and knew they could mould him into an all-timer.Gronk also got in trouble with Pats on draft dayEventually, Belichick selected the Arizona prospect in the second round with the 42nd pick of the 2010 NFL Draft, but it wasn’t long before they had to tell him off.Gronk celebrated wildly with his family after being drafted in 2010X@_MLFootballThe Patriots called him to tell him ‘enough was enough’X@_MLFootballView Tweet: https://twitter.com/hashtag/PATRIOTS?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5EtfwIn fact, it took Gronk all of five minutes to get in trouble with his new team.“When I was drafted to the Patriots it was a proud moment,” Gronkowski said in ‘The Dynasty: New England Patriots’ docuseries on AppleTV+.“My family came on stage as well. We got in a huddle. We were [cheering] in the huddle, jumping up and down.“And then all of a sudden I get a phone call from the Patriots, and they said, ‘Hey Rob, you can get off now, like enough is enough.’“And I’m sitting there like, ‘Wow I’m already in trouble. It’s been five minutes since I’ve been on the Patriots, and I’m already in trouble.”The larger than life Hall of Fame-worthy tight end spent the first nine seasons of his career with the Patriots, winning three Super Bowls and recording 521 catches for 7,861 yards and 79 touchdowns.NFL's Greatest......Ranking the top 10......Quarterbacks of all-time – Can anyone better Tom Brady?Wide receivers of all-time – Does Randy Moss or Jerry Rice come out on top?Running backs of all-time – Stacking Jim Brown, Barry Sanders, Walter Payton, Emmitt Smith and moreTight ends of all-time – How does Travis Kelce compare?The 35-year-old has four All-Pro selections, five Pro Bowls and the 2014 NFL Comeback Player of the Year award on his resume.He also holds NFL records for most total touchdowns in a season by a tight end (18) and most receiving touchdowns in a season by a tight end (17). His partnership with Brady is the stuff of legend, and in 2020 the pair teamed up in Tampa Bay where they claimed another world title together in 2021.He retired in 2022 and has been working as a Fox studio analyst ever since.Gronk has made guest appearances with the Fox crew over the last couple of seasons, and with the iconic Jimmy Johnstone retiring from his role with the network he was expected to fill the void.Last season, Gronkowski joined Terry Bradshaw, Howie Long and Michael Strahan alongside host Curt Menefee.It reunited Gronkowski with his Super Bowl winning quarterback at both New England and Tampa Bay as the network confirmed their $375million man Tom Brady would be back for a second year in the booth.Gronkowski signed a one-day contract with the Patriots as part of the tribute to the tight end last yearGETTYHe is now a popular member of Fox’s NFL coverageGettyPatriots rocked by Mike Vrabel news during 2026 draftThe Patriots have dominated the 2026 NFL Draft, but not for reasons they would have wanted.Photographs of head coach Mike Vrabel and NFL reporter Dianna Russini — both of whom are married with children — holding hands and embracing recently emerged at an Arizona resort.On Thursday, photos appeared to show Vrabel and Russini kissing at a bar were published by Page Six and were reportedly taken six years ago.Russini had already resigned from her post at The Athletic prior to the fresh batch of photos being released, and has since deleted her account on X.Vrabel announced he would begin counseling this weekend and step away from the team for the final day of the NFL draft on Saturday, stating his actions did not meet his personal standards and he needed to prioritize his family.Vrabel addressed media ahead of the NFL draftGettyHe made an appearance before Thursday’s draft where he said “my priorities are my family and this football team. In that order. … My family needs me this weekend, and that’s where I’ll be.”The Patriots made it clear they were standing behind their coach in a statement on Thursday.“The New England Patriots fully support Mike Vrabel’s decision to prioritize his family first, as well as his own wellbeing. Mike has been open with us about his commitment to being the best version of himself for his family, this team and our fans, and we respect the steps he is taking to follow through on that commitment,” read the statement.“We are confident in the leadership and communication Mike has established with our personnel staff throughout this pre-draft process. While he will not be present at the facility on Saturday, we know the draft evaluations are complete and Eliot Wolf and his personnel staff are prepared to execute our draft as planned this weekend.”The Patriots have 11 picks in the 2026 NFL Draft.After trading up from the 31st to the 28th overall selection with the Buffalo Bills, New England selected Utah offensive tackle Caleb Lomu.Stay up to date with the latest from the NFL across all platforms – follow our dedicated talkSPORT USA Facebook page and subscribe to our talkSPORT USA YouTube channel for all the news, exclusives, interviews and more.