What use is a above-average brain if the person lacks the social skills to apply their intelligence? No, they are not single-handedly going to invent the cure for cancer.
On the other hand, the NFL star leads by example, unites us in support for our team and might very well have a much larger beneficial effect on society than the nerd in the back of the class room could hope to have.
Of course, this idea, that intelligence is not as important as some might want it to be, might be lost on a forum that ironically calls itself 'news for nerds, stuff that matters'.