5. Emlen Tunnell (Iowa) Tunnell's story reads like a movie. At one point spending time in the Coast Guard, Tunnell paid his way to New York in 1948 and asked the Giants for a tryout. He finished his career with 79 career interceptions, second in NFL history only to Paul Krause. Known as New York's "offense on defense," the show had just started once Tunnell picked the ball off; he finished his career with nearly 1,300 interception return yards. With another 2,217 yards gained returning punts, Tunnell was always a threat to score. A member of two championships teams, Tunnell was selected to nine Pro Bowls and became the first African-American enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1967. 4. Antonio Gates (Kent State) After just five seasons in the NFL, Gates is on pace to destroy the record books. Take into consideration that Shannon Sharpe is the all-time leading tight end in touchdowns. During his 14-year career, Sharpe scored 62 times. Gates already has a whopping 43 touchdowns. A basketball player at Kent State who led the Golden Flashes to the 2002 Elite Eight, Gates' rise to stardom has been well chronicled, signing with the Chargers in 2003 even though he hadn't played football since his senior year in high school. Already named to three Pro Bowls, the sky is the limit for Gates and the San Diego offense also featuring the greatest running back in the game, LaDainian Tomlinson. 3. Marion Motley (Nevada) Motley entered the league as a 26-year-old rookie in 1946 after playing football for Paul Brown at the Great Lakes Naval Training Station during World War II. A bruising 232-pound fullback for Cleveland, Motley was a man amongst boys. In the late 1960s, Paul Zimmerman – better known as Sports Illustrated's "Dr. Z" – even wrote Motley was the best player he had ever seen. His first two seasons, he even started at linebacker for the Browns. Averaging 5.7 yards per carry, Motley finished his career with 4,720 rushing yards and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1968. 2. Willie Brown (Grambling) After being used exclusively as a tight end and defensive end under Eddie Robinson, Brown was initially signed – then cut – by the Houston Oilers. After establishing himself with the Denver Broncos, this Hall of Famer was traded to the Raiders in 1967, where he became a member of the most feared secondary in NFL history. Along with George Atkinson, Skip "Dr. Death" Thomas and Jack "The Assassin" Tatum, they took it as a personal insult when teams passed over the middle. Brown was a lockdown corner that went to four Pro Bowls and collected 54 career interceptions. He is best remembered for his 75-yard interception return for a touchdown in Super Bowl XI, as the Raiders crushed Minnesota, 32-14. 1. Dick "Night Train" Lane (Scottsbluff Junior College) No discussion about the roughest player in NFL history is complete without mentioning "Night Train" Lane. After four years in the Army, Lane was just looking for a job when he walked into the offices of the Los Angeles Rams and asked for a tryout. Just months later, he set an NFL record with 14 interceptions in just 12 games – a mark that still stands today. Lane left a huge black and blue mark on the game as his signature move, the "Night Train Necktie," forced the league to outlaw tackling players around the head. He also went to seven Pro Bowls and intercepted 68 passes in his Hall of Fame career, with his best years coming as a member of the Detroit Lions. How many people can say that? And who had a better nickname? Jim Weber is currently a freelance writer residing in New York City after working for both NBC and CBS Sports. He recently finished "The Greatest Day in Sports" a book about the Kentucky Derby.
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