Succeeding in the NFL is tough enough. Imagine being talented enough to succeed in other sports simultaneously, or even another league altogether! Former Eagles quarterback and Super Bowl MVP Nick Foles recently won a Pickleball gold medal at the PPA finals. With this achievement, he entered an elite club of footballers who saw the highest level of success in multiple sports.

In that regard,  are arguably the 5 biggest NFL stars to ever play and reach the highest level in another sport. No spoilers yet, but the list includes cross-sport names from MLB and professional wrestling. There’s even an Olympic gold medal winner topping our list. Additionally, we have two special entries at the end you can’t miss!

5 of the greatest cross-sport NFL stars ever

5. Nick Foles

Former Eagles quarterback Nick Foles is the latest addition to this list. The backup QB led the Phillies to their maiden ring at Super Bowl LII and also received the MVP in the process. But that’s not the only time he got the winner’s medal around his neck, and not the only sport either.

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Last week, at the Professional Pickleball Association (PPA) Tour in San Clemente, California, the current free agent won a pair of gold medals. He played the two events alongside his wife, Tori Moore, and friend, Jim Davenport. Former Super Bowl winner Golden Tate also competed in the doubles event of the same tournament, according to the PPA site.

4. Pat McAfee

To regular football fans, Pat McAfee needs no introduction. The former Colts All-Pro punter started as an NXT commentator after his football career was over. But his rivalry with wrestler Adam Cole led him to take up his next role at the organization: competing at the NXT. He made his ring debut at the NXT takeover XXX. He further made his WrestleMania debut at AT&T stadium in April 2022, where he shared the stage with former CEO Vince McMahon and ‘Stone Cold’ Steve Austin.

3. Deion Sanders

The Colorado Buffaloes‘ Coach Prime doesn’t wear gold sunglasses for no reason. Prime Time has turned everything he has touched into gold. Aside from his two consecutive Super Bowls with the 49ers and the Cowboys, he was also a participant in the MLB’s World Series with the Atlanta Braves. Although he never made it to the MLB All-Star, unlike his eight NFL All-Pro inductions, Sanders remains the only athlete to this day to play in both the Super Bowl and World Series.

2. Bo Jackson

If not for his untimely NFL career, which ended due to a devastating hip injury in 1991, Jackson could have been the first, even before Sanders, and possibly the only athlete to date to play and win both the Super Bowl and World Series. Unlike Sanders, he won neither of those, but in the process made a record that is yet to be broken by anyone. With his 1989 All-Star inclusion and 1990 All-Pro for the Raiders, Bo Jackson remains the only athlete so far to be named into both league’s best teams.

1. Bob Hayes

A modern-day football fan might find the name a bit unfamiliar, but make no mistake… No other NFL star ever saw as much success in successive sports as Hayes did in football and track & field. So much so that his track career even overshadowed his lone 1972 Super Bowl ring with the Cowboys. Alright, enough with teasing, ‘Bullet Bob’ is the only NFL athlete ever to win an Olympic gold medal.

Actually, make it 2, both of which came in the 100-meter sprint and 4×100 relay events at the Tokyo 1964 Olympic Games. Following this, he held the title of the World’s fastest man for quite a while. Even modern-day analysts compare his speed to that of Usain Bolt, while some believe Bullet Bob to be actually faster. Understandably, his impact is far too widespread than just in one sport, and Bullet Bob remains the OG and the most successful cross-sport Gridiron athlete ever.

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If you’ve made it this far, you deserve a treat. Here are two recent NFL athletes who could have made it to the top at another sport if they wished to.

Bonus: NFL stars who nearly joined other leagues

1. Patrick Mahomes

Chiefs quarterback, reigning Super Bowl winner, Super Bowl, and NFL MVP Patrick Mahomes, has a massive portfolio already in his 6 years at the league. But did you know Mahomes could have followed a different career path in baseball? He was a 37th-round pick in the 2014 MLB draft by the Detroit Tigers. But he chose to play football at Texas Tech University because baseball didn’t offer him a scholarship at that point. A decade later, we cannot deny how right that decision was!

2. Tom Brady

Did you see it coming?

The GOAT was doing just as fine in baseball as in football. He was an 18th-round pick for the Montreal Expos in the 1995 MLB draft. He was even the last former draft pick for the Expos active in professional sports before his retirement, as the franchise relocated to Washington in 2004, becoming the Washington Nationals. But Brady‘s inner voice told him, ‘Hey Tom, play football,’ which he did. Brady chose to sit out of the MLB career and entered the 2000 NFL draft where he was the 199th overall pick for the New England Patriots. The rest is history.

Which name from the list surprised you the most? Let us know in the comments.

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