From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Nicholas Anthony Buoniconti (born December 15,
1940) is a former American Football League and
NFL Hall of Fame middle linebacker, who played for the Boston Patriots and Miami
Dolphins.
Born on December 15, 1940 in Springfield, Massachusetts,
Buoniconti graduated from Notre Dame, and was drafted by
the American Football League's
Patriots in the thirteenth round of the 1962 AFL draft.
Pro
career
As a tackle, Buoniconti was the captain of the 1961 Notre Dame
football team, but was considered by NFL scouts as "too small" to
play Pro Football. Drafted by the Boston Patriots in the 1962 American Football
League college draft and switched to linebacker, Buoniconti
made an immediate impact with the Patriots, being named the team's
rookie of the year. The following year he helped Boston capture the
1963 AFL Eastern Division title. With
Boston, he appeared in five AFL All-Star Games, and recorded 24
interceptions, which is still the seventh-most in team history. He
was named 2nd team All-AFL in 1963 and the
following season began a run of five consensus All-AFL seasons in
the following six seasons, missing only 1968 when he was named
second-team All-AFL. Buoniconti is a member of the Patriots
All-1960s (AFL) Team and the AFL All-Time
Team.
He was traded to the AFL's Miami Dolphins in 1969. He continued to play well with the
Dolphins, in 1969-1974 and 1976, and made the AFL All-Star team in 1969 and the NFL Pro Bowl in 1972 and 1973. Named
All-AFC in 1972 as well.
His leadership made him a cornerstone of the Dolphins' defense.
During his years there, the team advanced to three consecutive Super Bowl appearances,
one of which was the team's 1972 undefeated season. In 1973, he
recorded a then-team record 162 tackles (91 unassisted). He was
named to the AFC-NFC Pro
Bowl in 1972 and 1973.
Buoniconti ended his career with an unofficial 24 sacks,
eighteen with the Patriots and six while with the Dolphins.
He was named the Dolphins' Most Valuable Player three times
(1969, 1970, 1973). In 1990, he was voted as a linebacker on the
Dolphins' Silver Anniversary All-Time team. A year later on
November 18, 1991, he was enshrined on the Dolphin Honor Roll at
Joe Robbie Stadium.
Buoniconti got his law
degree during his years with the Patriots. He was a practicing
attorney for a short time. He was also President of the US Tobacco
Company during the late 1970s and early 1980s. He was a leading
critic of studies which showed that smokeless tobacco caused cancer of the mouth as well as other types of
cancer.
In recent years, he has become the most outspoken member of the
1972 Undefeated Season team. It is rumored that he leads a
champagne toast every year after the last remaining undefeated team
loses for the first time. Also, it is reported that Buoniconti
sends a Christmas card every year to former Minnesota
Vikings defensive end Bob Lurtsema, whose roughing-the-passer
violation in an early 1972 game aided the Dolphins' undefeated
season.
Buoniconti also appeared in one of the American
Express "Do you know me?" TV ads, in which he talked about the
No-Name Defense. The punch line was a variation on an old joke,
with Buoniconti remarking that everyone knows him now. A
passerby remarks, "Hey, I know you... you're... uh... uh..." trying
to recall Buoniconti's name. Upon being told that it's Nick
Buoniconti, the passerby says, "No, that's not it."
Buoniconti put his verbal talent to use as a co-host of the HBO
series Inside
the NFL until 2001. That same year, Buoniconti was named
to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
In 1985, after his son Marc suffered a paralyzing spinal cord
injury making a tackle for The
Citadel, Nick became the public face of the group that founded
the Miami Project to Cure
Paralysis, now one of the world's leading neurological research
centers. Barbara Shaver was his personal assistant for 30
years.
Buoniconti is a member of the National Italian American Sports
Hall of Fame.
Personal
Life
He is first cousins with Joe Buoniconti.
College
career
In 1960, As a junior, was second on the Fighting Irish in
tackles (behind senior captain Myron Pottios) with 71. As a senior
in 1961 led the team with 74 tackles as the Irish co-captain and
was rewarded with 2nd-team All-America selections from UPI, TSN, and
the Football Coaches' Association.
See also
External
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