Based on pure physical talent, receiver Courtney Gardner might have been the best undrafted rookie to agree to join the Chargers. But Gardner has left the Chargers before he ever officially joined them, and it remains to be seen whether he ever joins any team.
Gardner and the Chargers have “agreed to part ways while Gardner handles some personal matters,” according to U-T San Diego.
Personal matters have held Gardner back throughout his football career. Out of high school he originally committed to Nevada but couldn’t qualify academically. He then became a junior college All-American at Sierra College, and he was highly sought after by major football programs across the country, but although he committed at various times to both Oklahoma and LSU, he never attended either school. Gardner has been arrested twice in his hometown of Reno, Nevada, once for possession of alcohol by a minor and once for obstructing a police officer.
The 6-foot-3, 215-pound Gardner definitely has the athletic ability to be an NFL wide receiver, but it’s highly questionable whether he’ll ever get his head on straight enough to play in the NFL.
