Shane Nelson (born May 25, 1955) is a former professional
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 ...
player who played
linebacker
Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and the defensive linemen. They are the "middle ground" of defenders, p ...
for six seasons for the
Buffalo Bills
The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. ...
. Nelson was discovered at an open trial held by the Dallas Cowboys. He was the only player, out of 1,800, to be offered an NFL contract. However, Nelson rejected Dallas' offer and signed for the Bills where he felt he had more of a chance of playing
During his time in Buffalo he was a part of the "Bermuda Triangle" which also consisted of
Fred Smerlas
Frederic Charles Smerlas (born April 8, 1957) is a former American football nose tackle who was a five-time NFL Pro Bowl selection during a 14-year career as a nose tackle with the Buffalo Bills, San Francisco 49ers and New England Patriots.
S ...
and
Jim Haslett. He is also a member of the NJCAA Hall of Fame.
1955 births
American football linebackers
Baylor Bears football players
Blinn Buccaneers football players
Buffalo Bills players
Living people
Players of American football from Texas
Sportspeople from San Patricio County, Texas
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