Rod Gardner
| No. 82, 85, 87 | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position: | Wide receiver | ||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
| Born: | October 26, 1977 Jacksonville, Florida, U.S. | ||||||||
| Height: | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | ||||||||
| Weight: | 215 lb (98 kg) | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| High school: | Raines (Jacksonville) | ||||||||
| College: | Clemson (1997–2000) | ||||||||
| NFL draft: | 2001 / round: 1 / pick: 15 | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||
| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||
| |||||||||
Roderick F. Gardner (born October 26, 1977) is an American former professional football player who was a wide receiver for six seasons in the National Football League (NFL) for six seasons. He played college football for the Clemson Tigers.
College career
[edit]Gardner played college football at Clemson University, where he started as a quarterback and safety on the practice squad (as a true freshman) before switching to wide receiver his sophomore year. He was selected as a second team All-ACC during his junior year after setting the school record for catches, yards, and receptions per game.[1] His senior year, he not only made first team All-ACC, but was a first team All-American as well. In 2000, he was one of the ten finalists for the Biletnikoff Award after posting six touchdowns on 51 receptions and 956 yards.[2]
Professional career
[edit]| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | 40-yard dash | Vertical jump | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 ft 2+1⁄4 in (1.89 m) |
219 lb (99 kg) |
33 in (0.84 m) |
10 in (0.25 m) |
4.48 s | 36.0 in (0.91 m) | |||||||
| All values from NFL Combine[3][4] | ||||||||||||
Washington Redskins
[edit]Gardner was chosen by the Washington Redskins with the 15th overall selection in the first-round draft pick of the 2001 NFL draft.[5] During his rookie year, he was selected as NFC Offensive Player of the Week after a 208-yard, one touchdown performance against the Carolina Panthers. His history at quarterback would lead the Redskins to utilize him on trick plays during games; during the 2003 NFL season he was 2-for-3 for 46 yards and two passing touchdowns (to Chad Morton and Trung Canidate).
Carolina Panthers
[edit]After four seasons in Washington, he was traded to the Carolina Panthers during the 2005 offseason for a sixth-round pick in the 2006 NFL draft.[6] He spent most of the season fourth on the Panthers' depth chart, behind Steve Smith, Keary Colbert, and Ricky Proehl.
Green Bay Packers
[edit]Gardner was waived by the Panthers on December 16, 2005, and he was then signed by the Green Bay Packers on December 19, 2005.[7] He re-signed with Green Bay on March 21, 2006. On September 2, 2006, Gardner was waived by the Packers.[8]
Kansas City Chiefs
[edit]In September 2006, he signed a three-year contract with the Kansas City Chiefs.[8] In 2006 with the Chiefs, he only had 2 receptions for 17 yards. He was released before the 2007 season.[9]
NFL statistics
[edit]| Year | Team | GP | Receiving | Rushing | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rec | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | FD | Att | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | FD | |||
| 2001 | WSH | 16 | 46 | 741 | 16.1 | 85 | 4 | 28 | 1 | 16 | 16.0 | 16 | 0 | 1 |
| 2002 | WSH | 16 | 71 | 1,006 | 14.2 | 43 | 8 | 51 | 1 | 1 | 1.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 2003 | WSH | 16 | 59 | 600 | 10.2 | 35 | 5 | 30 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2004 | WSH | 16 | 51 | 650 | 12.7 | 51 | 5 | 30 | 3 | 7 | 2.3 | 11 | 0 | 2 |
| 2005 | CAR | 11 | 9 | 84 | 9.3 | 15 | 1 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| GB | 2 | 4 | 67 | 16.8 | 33 | 0 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| 2006 | KC | 14 | 2 | 17 | 8.5 | 13 | 0 | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Career[10] | 91 | 242 | 3,165 | 13.1 | 85 | 23 | 148 | 5 | 24 | 4.8 | 16 | 0 | 3 | |
Personal life
[edit]Gardner competed on the thirty-sixth season of the American reality competition show The Amazing Race with his wife Leticia,[11] finishing in third place.
References
[edit]- ^ "Rod Gardner: Clemson's Mr. Confidence - Clemson Football News - TigerNet". www.tigernet.com. September 2, 2000. Retrieved December 14, 2015.
- ^ "Gardner Hauls In Semifinalist Nod For Biletnikoff Award". Clemson Tigers. October 26, 2000. Archived from the original on May 3, 2012. Retrieved November 19, 2011.
- ^ "Rod Gardner, Clemson, WR, 2001 NFL Draft Scout, NCAA College Football". draftscout.com. Retrieved March 5, 2022.
- ^ "Rod Gardner, Combine Results, WR - Ohio State". nflcombineresults.com. Retrieved March 5, 2022.
- ^ "2001 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved March 18, 2023.
- ^ Pasquarelli, Len (July 28, 2005). "Redskins deal Gardner to Carolina for future pick". ESPN. Retrieved November 19, 2011.
- ^ Pasquarelli, Len (December 19, 2005). "Packers claim Gardner from Panthers". ESPN. Retrieved November 19, 2011.
- ^ a b Pasquarelli, Len (September 11, 2006). "Chiefs add Gardner after receivers net 69 yards in loss". ESPN. Retrieved November 19, 2011.
- ^ "Chiefs Announce 14 Transactions". Kansas City Chiefs. August 28, 2007. Archived from the original on January 21, 2015. Retrieved November 19, 2011.
- ^ "Rob Gardner Stats". ESPN Internet Ventures. Retrieved June 9, 2014.
- ^ Gonzalez, Isabel (February 6, 2024). "Former Kansas City Chiefs player, wife become first members of 'The Amazing Race' 2024 cast". CBS Sports. Retrieved February 6, 2024.
- 1977 births
- Living people
- Players of American football from Jacksonville, Florida
- William M. Raines High School alumni
- American football wide receivers
- Clemson Tigers football players
- Clemson University alumni
- Washington Redskins players
- Carolina Panthers players
- Green Bay Packers players
- Kansas City Chiefs players
- Participants in American reality television series