Who did Nate Burleson marry? All about former NFL star and Hollywood Squares host

The NFL playoffs have begun, and the football league's former star-turned-commentator Nate Burleson’s contributions to the game have come into focus.

Burleson played for 11 years in the NFL as a wide receiver with the Vikings, Seattle Seahawks and Detroit Lions, according to a report in Shrine Bowl. His television career began in 2014 with the NFL Network after he retired from the sport.

He currently works as an NFL Network analyst on the show, Good Morning Football. He joined the show on August 1, 2016, alongside Kay Adams, Kyle Brandt, and Peter Schrager, Shrine Bowl reports.

In September 2021, Burleson started co-hosting CBS Mornings, joining Gayle King and Tony Dokoupil, as per a report in Deadline. Recently, he has been chosen as the host of the rebooted version of Hollywood Squares, which premiered on January 16, 2025, a TV Insider report states.

Wife Atoya Burleson has been by Nate's side throughout his career. The couple tied the knot in 2003. They are college sweethearts and met while studying at the University of Nevada, Reno. While the former NFL star continues to entertain us, read on to know about his personal and professional life.

---

Delving into the details of Nate Burleson’s personal and professional life

According to a report in People magazine, Nate Burleson met his wife Atoya Burleson in 1999 at the University of Nevada. Burleson was a wide receiver on the football team as he played for the Nevada Wolf Pack.

After dating for several years, the duo decided to tie the knot in 2003. They have three kids — sons Nathaniel II (born in 2004), and Nehemiah (2006) and daughter Mia (2010).

During a chat during the Sherri Shepherd’s talk show, Nate shared:

“When I met her, I was a freshman, I wasn’t even on the football field. She was running track, a superstar, and she was graduating on her way to get her master’s. So she didn’t trap me, I trapped her.”

Atoya Burleson, like husband Nate, is an athlete, too. She competed on the University of Nevada’s track and field team as a hurdler and sprinter. She set three school records and won gold in the 100-meter hurdles during the Big West outdoor championship in 2000, states a report in People magazine.

In October 2024, Atoya was inducted into the University’s Athletic Hall of Fame. While praising his wife, Burleson mentioned on CBS This Morning:

“She’s the fast one in the family, so when you see any of my kids run they got it from her.” He added: “I’m super proud of her and when people ask about me about my relationship, I am the lucky one. She is the catch. I am just the one that sits next to the superstar.”

Atoya is a podcaster and a businesswoman, and she launched a podcast called InsideLINES in 2019. She launched Ladies Playbook in 2024. According to her Instagram post: “Ladies Playbook is an exclusive website dedicated to providing recommendations and resources necessary for a professional athlete’s family to thrive wherever their career takes them.”

While Atoya's career as a podcaster and a businesswoman is going strong, husband Nate Burleson recently debuted as the host of the iconic show, Hollywood Squares, which has been revived on CBS. USA Today reports that Drew Barrymore stars as the center square of the game.

CBS Entertainment president Amy Reisenbach told Variety,

“Drew’s already a part of our CBS family,” adding: “She’s adorable, she’s engaging, she’s going to bring her friends under the squares. We think this is going to be a great 10 o’clock show for us."

The format seems to be similar to the original where the contestants play tic-tac-toe using answers provided by celebrity guests, seated in squares.