I'm bringing this up in honor of the Super Bowl. Note that I'm strictly referring to shows in which a one-time NFL player is a member of the main cast (or at the very least, a predominate recurring role), and not merely a guest star:

Fred Dryer - Hunter

Dick Butkus and Bubba Smith - Blue Thunder

Dick Butkus - My Two Dads and Hang Time

Bubba Smith - Semi-Tough

Lyle Alzado - Learning the Ropes

Alex Karras - Webster

Michael Strahan and Carl Weathers - Brothers

Carl Weathers - Street Justice, In the Heat of the Night, and The Mandalorian

Ed O'Neill - Married...with Children and Modern Family: Technically, Ed O'Neill never officially played in the NFL. He was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1969, but was cut in training camp.

Merlin Olsen - Little House on the Prairie, Father Murphy, Fathers and Sons, and Aaron's Way

Alan Autry - In the Heat of the Night

O.J. Simpson - 1st and Ten

Bob Golic - Saved by the Bell: The College Years

Don Meredith - Police Story

Brian Bosworth - Lawless

Joe Namath starred in a short-lived Friday night sitcoms that aired on NBC in the fall of 1978, The Waverly Wonders. It was canceled after three episodes due to poor ratings.

Roosevelt "Rosie" Greer - final season of Daniel Boone, starring cast member.

Rosey Grier also appeared in the short-lived sequel to The Danny Thomas Show Make Room for Granddaddy.

Ed Marinaro on Laverne & Shirley when the show jumped the shark and moved to LA as well as the Spike TV sitcom Blue Mountain State. He also appeared on two dramas, Hill Street Blues and Sisters.

So who from the NFL would you like to see staring in a TV show? Right now many have huge contracts as players that they don't need to do anything else.

I guess many former players transitioned into TV shows and movies since they could memorize scripts easily from all their training in learning play books.

I'd like to see Jerome Bettis in a TV show. His nickname is "The Bus" so perhaps he could play a bus driver for school kids in a show.

Terry Crews (Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Are We There Yet?, Everybody Hates Chris) played for several NFL teams.

Fred Williamson played Dr. Oliver "Spearchucker" Jones in the 1970 M*A*S*H film. He was on Julia as one of Diahann Carroll's romantic interests. He starred on the comedy-drama Half Nelson with Bubba Smith and Dick Butkus.

Timothy Brown appeared as Dr. Oliver Harmon "Spearchucker" Jones in the first six episodes of M*A*S*H in 1972.

10 former NFL stars who became television actors
https://www.metv.com/lists/10-former-nfl-stars-who-became-television-actors

I'd like to see Peyton and Eli Manning in a sitcom about brothers. They have funny personalities.

John Amos (Good Times) signed a free agent contract with the Kansas City Chiefs (back when they were still in the American Football League (https://www.facebook.com/1608185696067851/posts/december-27-1939-john-amos-bornhappy-80th-birthday-to-john-amos-who-was-born-on-/2537398929813185/)) in 1967. He also had a try out (https://cflapedia.com/Players/a/amos_john.htm) for the Denver Broncos prior to the start of his acting career.