Norman Edward Wells (born September 8, 1957) is a former

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...

guard Guard or guards may refer to: Professional occupations * Bodyguard, who protects an individual from personal assault * Crossing guard, who stops traffic so pedestrians can cross the street * Lifeguard, who rescues people from drowning * Prison ...

in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

(NFL) for the

Dallas Cowboys The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divisi ...

. He was drafted by the Cowboys in the twelfth round of the

1980 NFL Draft The 1980 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 29–30, 1980, at the New York She ...

. He played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

Northwestern University Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world. Charte ...

Early years

Wells attended

Warren Mott High School Warren Mott High School (WMHS, commonly referred to as Mott) is a public high school in Warren, Michigan, United States. It is part of the Warren Consolidated Schools district. It was founded in 1992 by the merger of the previous Warren High Sch ...

, where he played

defensive tackle A defensive tackle (DT) is a position in American football that will typically line up on the line of scrimmage, opposite one of the offensive guards, however he may also line up opposite one of the tackles. Defensive tackles are typically the la ...

. He accepted a football scholarship from

. In 1978, he suffered a season-ending knee injury in the first game and received an extra year of eligibility. He returned to become a starter at right defensive tackle. In his only year as a starter he posted 65 tackles (fifth on the team), 4 tackles for loss and one interception.

Professional career

Wells was selected by the

in the twelfth round (330th overall) of the

. He was converted into an

offensive guard Offensive may refer to: * Offensive, the former name of the Dutch political party Socialist Alternative * Offensive (military), an attack * Offensive language ** Fighting words or insulting language, words that by their very utterance inflict inj ...

in training camp. He played in three games on

special teams In American football, the specific role that a player takes on the field is referred to as their "position". Under the modern rules of American football, both teams are allowed 11 players on the field at one time and have "unlimited free substitu ...

before spraining his knee against the

Tampa Bay Buccaneers The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are a professional American football team based in Tampa, Florida. The Buccaneers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South divisio ...

and being placed on the

injured reserve list The injured reserve list ( IR list) is a designation used in North American professional sports leagues for athletes who suffer injuries and become unable to play. The exact name of the list varies by league; it is known as "injured reserve" in th ...

on October 3, 1980. Wells was activated for the playoffs on January 2. In 1981, his knee injury kept him on the

all season. In 1982, he was placed again on injured reserve on August 24, after failing his physical from complications from his previous knee injury, that eventually forced him to retire.

References

External links

Just Sports Stats
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wells, Norm Living people 1957 births Sportspeople from Warren, Michigan Players of American football from Michigan American football offensive linemen American football defensive tackles Northwestern Wildcats football players Dallas Cowboys players