Dana White Reveals He Almost Got NFL Stars Tom Brady And Rob Gronkowski To Play For Las Vegas

UFC President Dana White had it all planned out.

At the UFC 278 post-fight press conference, White admitted that he tried luring in decorated NFL quarterback Tom Brady and tight end Rob Gronkowski to join the Raiders as they prepared to debut in their new stadium in Las Vegas.

“I didn’t want to talk about that, no, but he sort of sucked me into on live TV,” White said at the UFC 278 post-fight press conferenc when Gronkowski brought it up.

“Yeah, it’s true. I talked Brady into playing for the Raiders and Gronk was coming with him and they were negotiating the deal and they were really close to getting it done and then Gruden pulled the deal.

“Brady was not happy about it and neither was I. That’s that. He went to the [Tampa Bay] Buccaneers and won the Super Bowl. I own a f— box there [at Allegiant Stadium].”

This all took place sometime before the 2020 season when Brady was shopping for a new team after his longtime run with the New England Patriots.

Then Brady almost did it again in the following season, but fell short to the eventual Super Bowl champion Los Angeles Rams.

White revealed that he was not happy with how it all went down – and he blamed it all on Jon Gruden.

“It was almost a done deal and at the last minute [Jon] Gruden blew the deal up and said that he didn’t want him and all hell broke loose,” White said.

“… It would have been amazing for the city. It would have been amazing for the Raiders. Their first year there, they’ve got Brady and Gronk. I’m sure [Raiders owner] Mark Davis is real happy to hear this story.”