Rob Gronkowski's Case for Being the Greatest Tight End Ever

On Saturday, the "Gronk Spike" will officially be immortalized as star tight end Rob Gronkowski is inducted into the New England Patriots Hall of Fame.

Gronkowski will become the 38th member of the Patriots organization to be inducted into the team's Hall of Fame.

He is the latest second dynasty player — following Vince Wilfork, Julian Edelman and Tom Brady — to wear the red jacket.

Gronkowski has more receiving touchdowns than any other Patriots player, with 79.

He ranks second in receiving yards, with 7,861.

He ranks fifth in receptions, with 521.

The dominant tight end played nine seasons in New England.

He joined Brady in Tampa Bay for two more seasons.

He achieved a total of four Super Bowl victories: XLIX, LI, LIII and LV.

The words "greatest tight end of all time" often describe the menacing 6-foot-6, 265-pound force.

But people continue to debate the accolades of Gronkowski against recent successes like Travis Kelce.

They also compare him to previous players like Tony Gonzalez, who made the tight end position unique.

However, when comparing Gronkowski — or "Robby G," or "Gronk" — with other tight ends, it's clear that no one played the game like New England's No. 87.

CRUTCHES AND CLUTCHES

Gronk has some of the clutchest plays of any tight end for any organization ever.

He is a defining point of the 2010s Patriots dynasty.

He served as one of the three figureheads with Brady and Edelman.

Each carried a load in winning three Super Bowls in five years.

In Super Bowl XLIX, the tight end made an empowering catch over the Seahawks' K.J. Wright for a touchdown.

That gave New England the lead before halftime in what would be their first title in a decade.

Brady also relied on Gronk for big third and fourth down conversions.

In the 2015 AFC Championship, Gronkowski kept the Patriots in the game.

He caught a 40-yard reception and followed it with a four-yard touchdown.

New England would go on to lose to that year's Super Bowl champion Denver Broncos.

Perhaps one of his most notorious plays as a Patriot came in his final reception with a flying Elvis sticker attached to his helmet.

The veteran tight end hauled in a 29-yard seam route reception to put the Patriots within scoring position.

That opened up Super Bowl LIII in an effort to beat the Los Angeles Rams.

Even in Tampa Bay, Gronk still showed flashes of dominance.

This was especially true in his sixth Super Bowl appearance against the Kansas City Chiefs.

ELECTION DAY CONTROVERSY AND CLARIFICATION

Separately, Gronkowski recently addressed a controversy surrounding his appearance at New Hampshire polling locations on Election Day.

The four-time Super Bowl champion denied any connection to Turning Point USA after photos and videos sparked questions about his involvement.

Gronkowski shared a statement on Instagram Stories on November 5.

He explained that he and his partner, Camille Kostek, had simply stopped to greet fans after visiting Goffstown High School.

"It has been upsetting and eye opening to see the narratives around my visit to NH on Election Day with Camille," Gronkowski wrote.

He then directly addressed reports linking the couple to the conservative organization.