Playing in the National Football League takes toughness, grittiness and sometimes a little craziness. The NFL is about rookie cornerbacks being booted from practice for hitting too hard. You know, guys who would risk life and limb for their team. Ronnie Lott was one of those guys. All the proof you need is that he once amputated his pinky because he wanted to avoid missing games.

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Ronald Mandel Lott born May 8, is an American former professional football player who was a cornerback , free safety , and strong safety in the National Football League NFL for 14 seasons during the s and s. Lott was elected into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in , and is widely considered to be one of the best of all time at the safety position in NFL history and one of the best players in NFL history. Lott graduated from the University of Southern California in with a degree in public administration. As a sophomore in , he helped the Trojans to a share of the national championship with a win in the Rose Bowl ; they finished second in the polls in and again won the Rose Bowl. After much consideration, head coach John Robinson asked Lott to play defense because he was a better tackler than Allen. The level of skill demonstrated by the 6-foot, pound standout was instantly recognized, and from the very beginning of training camp he had the job as the 49ers' starting left cornerback. In his rookie season in , he recorded seven interceptions, helped the 49ers to win Super Bowl XVI , and also became only the second rookie in NFL history to return three interceptions for touchdowns. His outstanding play resulted in his finishing second for rookie of the year honors, behind New York Giants linebacker Lawrence Taylor. Lott switched to the safety position in
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