A better comparison would be NFL players per state.
BTW Mississippi population is only 2,844,658 where as TN's is 5,689,283
CALIFORNIA 200
TEXAS 174
FLORIDA 173
GEORGIA 86
LOUISIANA 84
OHIO 73
PENNSYLVANIA 60
SOUTH CAROLINA 53
VIRGINIA 51
MISSISSIPPI 48
ILLINOIS 45
MICHIGAN 45
NEW JERSEY 44
ALABAMA 42
WASHINGTON 41
NORTH CAROLINA 40
NEW YORK 34
TENNESSEE 33
MARYLAND 28
IOWA 25
ARIZONA 24
MISSOURI 21
OKLAHOMA 21
ARKANSAS 18
MASSACHUSETTS 18
COLORADO 17
INDIANA 16
WISCONSIN 16
MINNESOTA 14
NEBRASKA 14
KANSAS 13
OREGON 13
UTAH 12
HAWAII 11
WASHINGTON, DC 10
KENTUCKY 9
IDAHO 8
CONNECTICUT 5
WEST VIRGINIA 5
DELAWARE 4
NEVADA 4
MONTANA 3
NEW MEXICO 3
WYOMING 3
ALASKA 2
NORTH DAKOTA 2
SOUTH DAKOTA 2
NEW HAMPSHIRE 1
RHODE ISLAND 1