Written by Gerard T Fanner, Jr.

Called too small to play in the NFL even by his Notre Dame Coach,Nick Buoniconti went undrafted in the NFL and wasn’t selected until the 13^th round of the AFL draft. Nick spent the first half of his career with the Boston Patriots helping them win the 1963 AFL Eastern Division title. He still ranks 7^th in team history with 24 interceptions in his career.

In 1969 he was traded to the AFL’s Miami Dolphins where he became the cornerstone of the Miami defense.  While with the Dolphins, the team went to 3 consecutive Super Bowls, winning two and completed the NFL’s only undefeated season.

He was named the Dolphins' Most Valuable Player three times(1969, 1970 and 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.

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.