Nate Odomes - (1987 – 1993)
Nate Odomes was selected in the second round of the 1987 NFL Draft out of Wisconsin. The Buffalo Bills made him the 29th overall pick and quickly inserted him as one of their starting corners his rookie year. He was the Bills top corner all four years the Bills were in the Super Bowl and was a big part of why those defenses were so incredibly solid.
Odomes played with the Bills for seven seasons; however, he suffered a knee injury that took his 1994 season. The season prior, he recorded an amazing nine interceptions and was voted to the Pro Bowl, while also earning second-team All-Pro honors. In addition, he finished seventh in Defensive Player of the Year voting.
Odomes did not play in 1995 either and signed with the Atlanta Falcons for one last shot at a comeback in the NFL in 1996; however, he played in only seven games, starting four of those.
Odomes is certainly a poster boy for a “what if” story. If he had not suffered the knee injury, how much greater of a career could he have had? In just seven seasons with the Bills, he recorded 26 interceptions, which places him fifth on Buffalo’s all-time list.