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Kelly CohenESPN
Have you ever seen those memes about how fun it would be to be coworkers with your best friend?
In sports, it happens more than you would think.
On Tuesday, tight end Rob Gronkowski came out of retirement to return to the NFL. Having retired with the New England Patriots, he was traded by the team to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers — all so he could reunite with quarterback Tom Brady.
Gronk and Brady played together on the Patriots for nine seasons — and by played together, we mean dominated together. The two won three Super Bowls together.
So the duo will get to work together again as soon as the 2020 NFL season begins. Which got us to thinking about what other athletes have teamed up together in multiple places. Thanks to ESPN Stats & Information for helping us compile this list.
NFL
Jay Cutler and Brandon Marshall
Though Marshall has since made comments putting their friendship in doubt, the quarterback and wide receiver had very successful seasons together, playing on the Denver Broncos from 2006 to 2008 and the Chicago Bears from 2012 to 2014.
In 2008, Cutler threw the ball to Marshall a staggering 179 times.
Peyton Manning and Brandon Stokley
A Hall of Famer, Manning, got to throw the ball to Stokley quite a lot. The duo were on the Indianapolis Colts together from 2003 to 2006, during which Stokley caught Manning’s then-record 49th touchdown pass in 2004.
They were also on the Denver Broncos together in 2012. The two won Super Bowl XLI together when the Colts beat the Chicago Bears in February 2007.
Ken Stabler and Dave Casper
The Hall of Famers were on the Oakland Raiders together from 1974 to 1979, and then on the Oilers from 1980 to 1981.
If you’ve heard of the “Ghost to the Post” play, you have these two to thank for it. The pass from Stabler to Casper helped set up the game-tying field goal during the 1977 AFC divisional playoff game.
The Raiders went on to win the game in double overtime, the fifth-longest game in NFL history. The Raiders went on to win Super Bowl XI against the Minnesota Vikings in 1977.
Randall Cunningham and Cris Carter
The quarterback and wide receiver duo played on the Philadelphia Eagles from 1987 to 1989 and then joined forces on the Vikings from 1997 to 1999.
The 1998 Vikings team was legendary, going 15-1 in the regular season. However, despite being favored to win Super Bowl XXXIII, the Vikings were upset by the Atlanta Falcons in the 1998 NFC Championship Game.
Y.A. Tittle and Hugh McElhenny
The quarterback and halfback, respectively, are both Hall of Famers. Sadly, they never won a Super Bowl during their otherwise successful time together on the San Francisco 49ers from 1952 to 1960. They reunited for one year, 1963, on the New York Giants.
Kevin Greene and Greg Lloyd
The two linebackers were a scary sight for any offense. They were on the Pittsburgh Steelers from 1993 to 1995, before teaming up for one year together on the Carolina Panthers in 1998.
MLB
The two were pretty phenomenal on the Boston Red Sox, their team from 2016 to 2019.
The baseball world was shocked when they were both traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers this offseason, which was the first time an MVP winner (Betts) and a Cy Young winner (Price) moved together to a new team.
Roger Clemens and Andy Pettitte
Imagine playing the New York Yankees and having to worry about facing either Clemens or Pettitte.
The pitching stars were Yankees teammates from 1999 to 2003, helping New York win the 1999 and 2000 World Series. Then, they were on Houston Astros from 2004 to 2006 before teaming back up for one more year together on the Yankees in 2007.
Pete Rose, Joe Morgan and Tony Perez
Rose, Morgan and Perez had quite the friendship goals going on. They were on the Cincinnati Reds together from 1972 to 1976, before all three reunited on the 1983 Philadelphia Phillies.
The three of them won two World Series rings with the Reds, in 1975 and 1976.
Steve Carlton and Tim McCarver
This pitcher-catcher duo played for the St. Louis Cardinals together from 1965 to 1969, before meeting back up to play for the Philadelphia Phillies in 1972. They were again on the Phillies together from 1975 to 1980.
In 1967, they won the World Series together as members of the Cardinals.
Josh Beckett and Mike Lowell
Beckett and Lowell won World Series rings together on both the Miami Marlins, where they played from 2001 to 2005, and the Red Sox, where they played together from 2006 to 2010.
The November 2005 trade deal that sent Beckett and Lowell, as well as Guillermo Mota, from the Marlins to the Red Sox was labeled as one of the most consequential trades of the decade.
The Marlins won the 2003 World Series, and the Red Sox won the 2007 World Series.
Mark McGwire and manager Tony La Russa
This isn’t a player-player friendship, but rather a legendary player-manager one. McGwire and La Russa were on the Oakland Athletics from 1986 to 1995, and then were both part of the St. Louis Cardinals ballclub from 1997 to 2001.
They won the 1989 World Series together with the Athletics.
Yogi Berra and manager Casey Stengel
Another iconic player-manager duo, Berra and Stengel were part of the New York Yankees organization from 1949 to 1960. They also both were on the New York Mets in 1965, though Berra played only four games that season.
Berra was a 13-time World Series champion, and he and Stengel brought home rings together for the Yankees in 1949-53, 1956 and 1958.
NBA
LeBron James and Dwyane Wade
Two of the most recognizable BFFs in the NBA, James joined Wade in South Florida in 2010. Before James left in the 2014 offseason for Cleveland, they won two NBA championships for the Miami Heat. The two reunited for a season when Wade left Miami for the Cavaliers in 2017.
Wade has since retired, while LeBron has moved on to the L.A. Lakers.
Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce
The two will always be remembered for their time as teammates on the Boston Celtics from 2007 to 2013. In 2008, the Celtics were NBA champions, and Pierce won MVP.
The two were traded together to the Brooklyn Nets, where they played one season together in 2013.
These two really seem to attract championships. From 2011 to 2018, Leonard and Green were on the San Antonio Spurs together and brought an NBA championship to Texas in 2014.
The two reunited up north on the Toronto Raptors, and won the NBA Finals in the one season they played together in 2018-19.
Both of them now play in Los Angeles, though Leonard is on the Clippers and Green is on the Lakers.
Hakeem Olajuwon and Clyde Drexler
These two teammates loved playing together — and really loved playing together in Houston. Olajuwon and Drexler were collegiate teammates at the University of Houston from 1981 to 1983, and both played together on the Houston Rockets from 1995 to 1998. The duo won the 1995 NBA Finals together.
Shaquille O’Neal and Penny Hardaway
Shaq and Penny on a team together should’ve been unstoppable. However, the duo never won an NBA title together. They were teammates on the Orlando Magic from 1993 to 1996 and then again on the Miami Heat for the 2007-08 season.
NHL
Wayne Gretzky and Mark Messier
Arguably the greatest hockey player of all time, Gretzky played with Messier on the Edmonton Oilers from 1979 to 1988. During that time, they won four Stanley Cups, in the 1983, 1984, 1986 and 1987 seasons.
They then spent one more season (1996-97) together on the New York Rangers.
Wayne Gretzky and Jari Kurri
Gretzky also had success skating alongside Kurri. The two overlapped on the Oilers from 1980 to 1988, and Kurri also won four Stanley Cups with Edmonton.
The duo also played for the Los Angeles Kings from 1991 to 1995. The two led the Kings to the 1993 Stanley Cup final but ultimately lost to the Montreal Canadiens.
Mark Messier and Jari Kurri
Messier and Kurri were successful teammates too. The two were on the Oilers together from 1980 to 1990, during which they won five Stanley Cups. They also played together on the Rangers for the 1995-96 season.
Soccer
David Beckham and Ruud van Nistelrooy
The two soccer stars played in the Premier League together for Manchester United in 2001-02 and 2002-03 and then in La Liga together for Real Madrid in 2006-07.
Manchester United won the Premier League in 2003 after finishing third in 2002. In the 2006-07 season, Real Madrid won La Liga.
Thierry Henry and Rafael Márquez
Henry and Márquez played for Barcelona from 2007 to 2010, helping Barcelona win the Champions League in the 2008-09 season and La Liga in 2008 and 2009.
The two then played in the MLS together on the New York Red Bulls from 2010 to 2012
David Villa and Andrés Iniesta
Villa and Iniesta played on Barcelona together from 2010 to 2013, during which their team won a pair of La Liga titles.
The two then were also on Vissel Kobe, a Japanese professional football club, in 2019. Vissel Kobe won the Emperor’s Cup that season.
Villa and Iniesta were also teammates on the Spanish national team, which won UEFA Euro 2008 and the 2010 FIFA World Cup.