The 10 Biggest Nerds in the NFL

The NFL is not known for its nerds. However, that doesn't mean they don't have any.

Out of all the major sports, the NFL is probably the sport that carries the label "dumb jocks" more than any other. Whether that is true or not is up to you to decide.

Although the word nerd is usually associated with being a negative, it doesn't mean it is. According to dictionary.com, the definition of nerd is someone who "is an intelligent but single-minded person obsessed with a nonsocial hobby or pursuit." For example, I am a sports nerd. My life is obsessed with sports and my life revolves around it outside of family and friends.

Let's take a look at some of the NFL's biggest nerds.

10. Maurice Jones-Drew

Maurice Jone-Drew starts off our list representing fantasy football nerds.

The Jacksonville running back has acknowledged that he has several fantasy teams and is a dedicated owner. He even has his own weekly radio show all about fantasy football.

Now, whether or not fantasy players want to admit it or not, fantasy football is nerdy. Having a star NFL running back who is obsessed with it does seem to make playing fantasy games cooler. However, we are still nerds for playing and for following as closely as some of us do.

9. Greg McElroy

Greg McElroy is the third-string quarterback for the New York Jets. He has not done much in the NFL and before he ran his mouth in January of this year, he was known for his intelligence.

At the college level, he helped Alabama win a BCS championship all while getting a degree in marketing. He had a GPA of 3.86 and graduated in just three years. He scored a 43 out of 50 on his Wonderlic test during the combine. 

His future aspirations are in the field of politics or sports managing, which he will get his Masters in.

8. Alex Smith

Alex Smith was the No. 1 overall pick in 2004 by the San Fransisco 49ers. He had a hard time finding success in the NFL until the 2011 season. He led the 49ers to the NFC Championship game and had his best overall season as a quarterback.

In college, he graduated (in two years) with a 3.72 GPA with a degree in economics. He loves to read and can be considered a book nerd. Smith has said that he has many useless knowledge facts in his head from reading so many books.

7. Ryan Fitzpatrick

Ryan Fitzpatrick is known as one of the smartest, if not the smartest, player in the NFL.

The Buffalo Bills quarterback graduated from Harvard with a degree in economics and became the first Harvard quarterback to start in the NFL.

Off the field, Fitzpatrick can relate to many of us. He is an Apple technology nerd. The younger generation is, for the most part, obsessed with technology and getting the newest and latest products. Tech nerds are nothing new in today's society, which is welcoming considering the amount of problems they can cause.

6. Myron Rolle

Myron Rolle was drafted by the Tennessee Titans in 2010. In 2009, he was at Oxford University getting his Master of Science in medical anthropology.

Rolle was one of the 32 finalists who receive Rhodes Scholarships every year. He interviewed for the scholarship and got it, becoming the second athlete to receive the award.

Rolle is your typical brainiac nerd. The Titans released Rolle and he was picked up by the Pittsburgh Steelers. If his NFL career doesn't pan out, he does have a backup plan with neurosurgery. So Rolle is pretty much set for life and is a great human being and is extremely smart. For a good man like this, let's hope he gets to play more in the NFL.

5. Tim Tebow

Tim Tebow has become a fascinating story. No matter what he does or where he goes, he is a topic of discussion.

One thing that Tebow is known for is his religious beliefs. He is an evangelical Christian in every sense of the word. He follows the Bible religiously (pun intended), and he has even gone as far as saying he is saving himself for marriage.

Being a religious nerd is probably something this world could use. To be clear, I am not promoting pushing religions on anyone; however, Tebow is very genuine in his comments and backs up his talk. His one focus in life is religion and he uses his platform in the NFL to help reach out to others through his beliefs.

4. Peyton Manning

Peyton Manning makes the list as a football nerd. If there was one player in the league you had to choose as the most dedicated player off the field, most people would say Manning.

He has been known for his knowledge of the playbook and his non-stop study of film ever since he entered the league.

Manning is a true artist when it comes to the game of football, and it can be said that a large part of that is because of the dedication he puts into perfecting his craft. He works almost year round building chemistry with his receivers and studying film to make himself better and his team better.

3. Josh Cribbs

Josh Cribbs of the Cleveland Browns has established himself as one of the best kick returners in the league. He has eight career kick-return touchdowns and has tied the single-game record for returning two kick returns of over 100 yards for touchdowns.

What you may not know about Cribbs is that he is a comic book nerd. If you don't believe me, here is what he was quoted as saying:

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"My favorite comics [were] The Punisher and Ghost Rider because I loved their characters and graphics,” Cribbs told Marvel. “I used to collect comic books when I was a kid with my brother who is the reason I got in to comics and I still have my collection at my parent’s house of over 100 comics."

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2. Lance Briggs

Since 2003, Lance Briggs has been an anchor in the Chicago Bears' front seven. He is one of the most intense players in the NFL and is one of the hardest hitters. However, he is just like Cribbs with his love for comic books.

The three-time All-Pro has collected comic books since a young age. It becomes clear how much Briggs is into comic books when he talks about his future plans.

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“I am probably going to go to a comic book store today,” he said on one of the Bears recent off days. “I always take a good break in between my stops to the store, because a lot of comic books come out monthly. So I usually wait a couple months and buy three or four of the same comic book so that I can read them all back-to-back and sometimes I just buy a box set so I have all of them.”

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Owning a comic book store shows real dedication and shows that Briggs is a comic book nerd.

1. Chris Kluwe

Now to the anti-climatic finish of the list. A punter as the biggest nerd in the NFL.

Chris Kluwe is a fan of the game World of Warcraft. In fact, he likes the game so much that he was thinking about changing his name to Chris World of Warcraft.

In hindsight, the name is better than Chad Ochocinco considering that it is grammatically correct. However, making your last name World of Warcraft has to be one of the nerdiest things in the world—not just in the NFL.