The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Canada and the highest professional level of American football in the world. Each NFL season begins annually with a three-week preseason in August, followed by the 18-week regular season, which runs from early September to early January, with each team playing 17 games and having one bye week. Following the conclusion of the regular season, seven teams from each conference, including four division winners and three wild card teams, advance to the playoffs, a single-elimination tournament, which culminates in the Super Bowl, played in early February between the winners of the AFC and NFC championship games.
The quarterback (QB) is a position in gridiron football who are members of the offensive side of the ball and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern American football, the quarterback is usually considered the leader of the offense, and is often responsible for calling the play in the huddle. The quarterback also touches the ball on almost every offensive play, and is almost always the offensive player that throws forward passes. When the QB is tackled behind the line of scrimmage, it is called a sack. The position is also colloquially known as the "signal caller" and "field general".
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are a professional American football team based in Tampa, Florida. The Buccaneers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) South division. They joined the NFL in 1976 as an expansion team, along with the Seattle Seahawks, and played its first season in the American Football Conference (AFC) West division.
Thomas Edward Patrick Brady Jr. is an American former professional football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 23 seasons. He spent his first 20 seasons with the New England Patriots and was a central contributor to the franchise's dynasty from 2001 to 2019. In his final three seasons, he was a member of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Brady is widely regarded as the greatest quarterback of all time.
Randy Gene Moss is an American former professional football wide receiver who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 14 seasons with the Minnesota Vikings, Oakland Raiders, New England Patriots, Tennessee Titans, and San Francisco 49ers. Widely regarded as one of the greatest wide receivers of all time, he holds the NFL single-season touchdown reception record, as well as the NFL single-season touchdown reception record for a rookie.
Charles Philip Bednarik, nicknamed "Concrete Charlie", was an American professional football linebacker and center who played in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Penn Quakers, and was selected with the first overall pick of the 1949 NFL draft by the Philadelphia Eagles, where he played his entire 14-year NFL career from 1949 through 1962. Bednarik is ranked one of the hardest hitting tacklers in NFL history, and was one of the league's last two-way players, so he was also known as "60 Minute Man".
Elisha Archibald Manning III is an American former professional football player who was a quarterback in the National Football League (NFL) for 14 seasons, primarily with the New Orleans Saints from 1971 to 1982. He also had brief stints with the Houston Oilers and the Minnesota Vikings. He played college football for the Ole Miss Rebels and was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1989. Manning is the patriarch of the Manning football dynasty, having preceded sons Peyton and Eli as a successful NFL quarterback.
Roland "Champ" Bailey Jr. is an American former professional football player who was a cornerback in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Georgia Bulldogs, where he earned consensus All-American honors, and was selected by the Washington Redskins in the first round of the 1999 NFL draft.
Samuel Adrian Baugh was an American professional football quarterback who played 16 seasons with the Washington Redskins of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the TCU Horned Frogs, where he was a two time All-American prior to being selected by the Redskins in the first round of the 1937 NFL draft. With the Redskins, Baugh won NFL Championships in 1937 and 1942 and led the NFL in completion percentage eight times, passing yards four times, and passing touchdowns once.
Shannon Sharpe is an American former professional football tight end who played 14 seasons in the National Football League (NFL), primarily with the Denver Broncos. Regarded as one of the greatest tight ends of all time, he ranks third in tight end receptions, receiving yards, and receiving touchdowns. He was also the first NFL tight end to amass over 10,000 receiving yards. He was inducted to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2011.
Deion Luwynn Sanders Sr. is an American football coach and former player who is the head coach of the Colorado Buffaloes football team. Nicknamed "Prime Time", "Neon Deion", and since becoming a coach, "Coach Prime", he played in the National Football League (NFL) for 14 seasons with the Atlanta Falcons, San Francisco 49ers, Dallas Cowboys, Washington Redskins, and Baltimore Ravens. Sanders was also a baseball outfielder for nine seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) with the New York Yankees, Atlanta Braves, Cincinnati Reds, and San Francisco Giants. He won two Super Bowl titles and made one World Series appearance in 1992, making him the only athlete to play in both a Super Bowl and a World Series.
Anthony David Gonzalez is an American former professional football tight end who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 17 seasons. Regarded as one of the greatest tight ends of all time, he is the NFL's all-time leader in receiving yards and receptions by a tight end, along with ranking third in overall receptions. Gonzalez spent his first 12 seasons with the Kansas City Chiefs, who selected him in the first round of the 1997 NFL draft. During his last five seasons, he was a member of the Atlanta Falcons. Since retiring in 2013, Gonzalez has served as a football analyst for NFL on Prime Video and was previously at CBS Sports and Fox Sports.
Aaron Charles Rodgers is an American professional football quarterback for the New York Jets of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the California Golden Bears, before being selected in the first round of the 2005 NFL draft by the Green Bay Packers, spending 18 seasons with the team. He is regarded among the greatest and most talented quarterbacks of all time.
Nathaniel Eugene Burleson is a Canadian-American television host, football commentator, and former football player. He played professionally as a wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL). Playing college football for the Nevada Wolf Pack, he earned first-team All-American honors in 2002. Burleson was selected by the Minnesota Vikings in the third round of the 2003 NFL draft. He was also a member of the Seattle Seahawks and Detroit Lions.
Anthony Cris Collinsworth is an American former professional football player and sports broadcaster who was a wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL) for eight seasons (1981–1988) with the Cincinnati Bengals. He played college football at the University of Florida, where he was recognized as an All-American. He is a television sportscaster for NBC, Showtime, and the NFL Network, and winner of 17 Sports Emmy Awards. He is also the majority owner of Pro Football Focus.
Brett Lorenzo Favre is an American former professional football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 20 seasons, primarily with the Green Bay Packers. Favre had 321 consecutive starts from 1992 to 2010, including 297 regular season games, the most in league history. He was also the first NFL quarterback to obtain 70,000 yards, 10,000 passes, 6,000 completions, 500 touchdowns, and victories over all 32 teams.
Robert James Gronkowski is an American former professional football tight end who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 11 seasons. Nicknamed "Gronk", Gronkowski played nine seasons for the New England Patriots, then played his final two seasons for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Regarded as one of the greatest tight ends of all time, he is a four-time Super Bowl champion, a five-time Pro Bowl selection, a four-time first-team All-Pro selection, and was selected to the NFL 2010s All-Decade Team and NFL 100th Anniversary All-Time Team.
Justin James Watt is an American former professional football defensive end who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 12 seasons, primarily with the Houston Texans. He played college football for the Central Michigan Chippewas and Wisconsin Badgers and was selected by the Texans in the first round of the 2011 NFL draft.
Chandler James Jones is an American professional football defensive end. He played college football for the Syracuse Orange and was selected by the New England Patriots in the first round of the 2012 NFL draft. He has also played for the Arizona Cardinals and the Las Vegas Raiders.
Trent Jordan Watt is an American professional football linebacker for the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Wisconsin Badgers before being selected by the Steelers in the first round of the 2017 NFL draft.
