Rob Gronkowski says he lived off $50,000 as an NFL rookie because he understood the NFL meant "Not For Long" "My agent gave me a $50,000 advance for what's going to come in the marketing world for myself. I just had to pay him back within the first $50,000 I made" "I was able to purchase my first car, which was a 2008 Escalade, and then to be able to pay rent once I got to New England. And then from there on out, I really didn't need any other money" "I was getting free meals at the facility. I just kind of needed gas money. You go out, the drinks are free or you pay for one, you get 10 free when you're when you're on the Patriots up in the Boston area" "So I wasn't really spending much money at all, especially when it got to the season. I mean, you're inside that building and everything's handed to you on a daily basis from breakfast all the way to dinner" "I just lived off my marketing dollars. I was living a low-level life. I had a condo with a roommate that was on the team as well. We're paying $1,500 a month in rent while in the NFL" "I was very frugal and that's how I got away with it. Not having any lavish purchases, the first couple years in the league and just banking away what I was making because I truly understood that the NFL stands for not for long"