On Thursday night, David Ortiz took the stage at the House of Blues in Boston for “The Roast of David Ortiz,” an event to benefit the former Red Sox star’s charity.
And among the roasters was none other than Rob Gronkowski, the Patriots tight end who pushes the limits of how much frat-bro nonsense the public will tolerate if it’s delivered with a goofy smile.
Gronkowski’s set was very classic Gronk, full of mediocre jokes delivered with irresistible earnestness. Gronk is almost like an 8-year-old who asks to tell you a joke, gets the punchline wrong but makes you laugh anyway because he tried so hard. The best moment was probably when Gronk tried to joke about Big Papi’s “Pequeño Papi” but mispronounced the word “pequeño.”
Gronk probably made some people squirm when he ventured into the dangerous comedic territory of black jokes, Jew jokes and incestuous sexual assault jokes. All of these zingers were fairly offensive, made either more or less so by their utter simplicity. The rules about what is acceptable humor are generally relaxed at roasts, for better or worse, and Gronk certainly took advantage.
After Gronk’s set, Dustin Pedroia stepped to the podium, bragged that he had written his own jokes, swore a lot, told two somewhat amusing stories and received a loud ovation from the Boston fans in attendance.
Overall, the Roast of Big Papi was so vulgar that NESN was forced to abort its plans to broadcast the event. But when you invite Gronk, what do you really expect?
Comments are closed.
About Alex Putterman
Alex is a writer and editor for The Comeback and Awful Announcing. He has written for The Atlantic, VICE Sports, MLB.com, SI.com and more. He is a proud alum of Northwestern University and The Daily Northwestern. You can find him on Twitter @AlexPutterman.
Recent Posts
The pressure is on New York Giants ownership to pick the right coach
President, CEO, and co-owner John Mara can't afford another bad hire.
Edgar Wright’s ‘The Running Man’ is both better and worse than the original
The 2025 reboot is a vast improvement in terms of filmmaking, but the 1987 version is more fun.
Josh Allen punished for ‘violent gesture’ before Dolphins game
As Buffalo Bills starting quarterback Josh Allen prepares for Sunday afternoon’s showdown against the Miami Dolphins, he was...
Donald Trump NFL stadium ‘will probably happen’
The Washington Commanders are working to build a new stadium, and it sounds like there is a good...
Dave Portnoy says Zohran Mamdani ‘hates America’
On Tuesday night, Democratic Socialist nominee Zohran Mamdani officially won the election and became the next Mayor of...
Aaron Rodgers does not hold back on Packers ‘revenge game’
"I don't have any animosity toward the organization."