Being an ace in the kitchen might not seem to be the most logical skill that an NFL player might also have. But then, when you start to look a little bit closer some parallels start to emerge.
Like the best chefs, football player have to think quickly and be inventive as the situation changes around them. They also need to have a forceful presence to impose their will on all around them as the recently released bio-pic of legendary chef Anthony Bourdain shows us all too well.
So it’s actually no surprise that there have been some very successful transitions from the gridiron to the griddle pan in the past, and there’s even one current player also making quite a name for himself behind the stove.
We’re talking, naturally, about the Chicago Bears cornerback Jaylon Johnson. When he’s not turning out for the Bears he’s operating under his alter-ego, The Shutdown Chef, a title apparently given to him by his wife.
He’s now a major presence on social media with his own channels on YouTube, Instagram and Tik Tok. He specialises in the sort of comfort food we all love like mac and cheese, cajun chicken and big weekend breakfasts of waffles, bacon and the like.
Jaylon says it was the birth of his first child that first got him into cooking, as he wanted to do more to help at home. The change appears to have benefited more than just family life. With the Packers going on to finish as NFC North champions last season, the team enjoyed one of its most successful campaigns in recent years. Whether that success can be sustained remains one of the division’s biggest talking points, and fans looking to gauge expectations for the season ahead can get the latest NFL betting lines from DraftKings.
Other NFL stars who are handy in the kitchen seem to be hiding their lights under a bit of a bushel at the moment, put there are quite a few veterans who have found their groove among the pans and burners.
One of the highest profile of these is Tobias Dorzon of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and The Tennessee Titans. During the 2012 off season he seized the opportunity to attend the International Culinary School at the Art Institute of Washington. After retiring from the game in 2018 he opened his first restaurant in Washington DC, the Union District Oyster Bar and Lounge. In 2021, he became part owner of Thirteen Restaurant in Houston, Texas and a year later he opened Huncho House in Maryland. Today he’s head chef there. He’s also been a frequent participant in food shows like Chopped, Tournament of Champions and Last Bite Hotel.
There may be something about cornerback taking to the kitchen if Jaylon Johnson and Eddie Jackson are anything to go by. The latter’s career included stints with the Carolina Panthers, the Miami Dolphins, the New England Patriots and the Washington Redskins as they were then called.
Always passionate about cooking, his first step into the culinary world was running a food truck called Caribbean Grill in Houston Texas. Along with a number of other food shows in the past he’s currently the host of Outchef’d on Food Network as well as the seasonal show Christmas Cookie Challenge.
In 2013 he took part in MasterChef and two years later he won the cooking competition Food network Star, beating 11 other would-be chefs. This then led to him being given his own show, BBQ Blitz and the spin-off show Kids BBQ Championship. He’s been quoted as saying that it his background as a professional sportsman that has given him the drive to be a chef.
Then there’s Derell Smith, former player turned chef who’s best known for his work starting and running community food projects. He also founded the Smokey Chance Barbecue in Los Angeles, now sadly defunct. His TV activity has included producer roles for shows including Dinner Budget Showdown, Yes Chef with Derell Smith and Easy Bake Battle: The Home Cooking Showdown.
Last, but not least, there’s Jared Veldheer, former offensive tackle for teams ranging from the Oakland Raiders to the Green Bay Packers and the New England Patriots.In 2025 he was one of the contestants in the Fox reality cooking show Next Level Chef. He made it through to week eleven of the competition before being eliminated but before that had been a winner in two episodes. It’s not yet known if he’s planning to take his culinary journey still further. But his performances on the show confirm that he has great potential.
So who knows what other players may have post-sport feature in the kitchen. For example, all eyes are on New York Jets’ Sauce Gardner. He’s already a cornerback and if there’s anything behind the theory of nominative determinism then he’s a shoo-in for a future sous chef at the very least.
