Sauce Gardner’s hometown is practically an NFL factory.
There were 19 players from Detroit high schools on NFL rosters for opening week, the most of any city. Bradenton, Fla., had the second-most players (17), followed by Houston with 16 players.
“Detroit football is tough. It’s real gritty and grimy there. There’s a lot of talent, though,” said Gardner, the New York Jets’ All-Pro cornerback, who attended Martin Luther King Jr. Senior High School in Detroit. “Lots of people with a story. The majority of people that I know in the league from Detroit, they worked really hard to get out, and they made it.”
Las Vegas (15), Miami (14) and Atlanta (14) were next on the list. Texas had the most players of any state with 187. Florida (178) and California (173) were next. Georgia (150) was the only other state with more than 100.
“High school football is the bedrock for advancement in our great game,” said Roman Oben, the NFL’s vice president of football development. “Recently, we have experienced growth in high school participation. It is amazing to see players making NFL rosters who come from nontraditional states not considered hot bed recruiting regions. Talent can come from all over the globe, and it takes growth from all areas to make up NFL rosters.”
