NFL 2008: The Players

In case you were wondering …

On opening day in the NFL, there were 1,696 players, 53 on each of the 32 teams. Johnson and Smith are the most common last names; there are 29 of each (this was before Chad became OchoCinco). There are 43 players named Chris.

Most active NFL players were born in the month of August, followed by September, January and March. The fewest were born in April and February. Being born on February 29, Darian Barnes of the Bills is the only NFL player who only gets a birthday party every four years. William Gay (Steelers), Stephen Tulloch (Titans) and Ray Edwards (Vikings) were all New Years babies. Josh McCown (Panthers), Brock Berlin (Rams), Stanford Keglar (Titans), Will Smith (Saints), and La'Roi Glover (Rams) were born on the Fourth of July. Marcus Trufant (Seahawks), Limas Sweed (Steelers), Thomas Williams (Jaguars) and Shawn Andrews (Eagles) were born on Christmas. Kevin Boss and I share the same birthday, January 11.

NFL Players represent 250 colleges. Miami (44 players) and Florida State (37 players) lead the list of colleges. By State, the most players went to college in Florida (136 players) and California (132 players). Eighteen colleges in Texas and fifteen colleges in Michigan are represented by NFL players. No NFL players came from colleges in Alaska or Vermont. By region, colleges in the Deep South, from Texas to Florida, and the Midwest, from Ohio to Minnesota, provide the NFL with nearly half of their players.

The youngest NFL player is the Raiders’ 21 year old Darren McFadden. The oldest is our own 44 year old John Carney, who is two years older than the next oldest player, Jeff Feagles. Feagles, on the other hand (or foot) has one more year of experience than Carney, the most in the NFL. Some teams consider kickers and punters to be easily replaceable, but of the 7 players with 17 or more years of NFL experience (other than Feagles), 4 are kickers and 2 are quarterbacks.

The shortest player is the Chargers’ 5’6: Darren Sproles, who is a foot and a quarter shorter than the Raven’s 6’9" Jared Gaither. The Bills’ Langston Walker is the heaviest player listed. At 366 pounds he weighs about two and a quarter times what the Saints’ Martin Gramatica does. The leanest player is the Bills’ 6"0" 172 pound punter Brian Moorman. The biggest is the Eagles’ 6’0" 350 pound offensive lineman Nick Cole, still two inches and thirty pounds short of a Fridge.