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Top 10 NFL careers of Tennessee football DBs

ByCaleb Calhoun|
11 Sep 1994: Defensive back Terry McDaniel of the Los Angeles Raiders returns an intereception for a touchdown during a game against the Seattle Seahawks at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in Los Angeles, California. The Seahawks won the game, 38-9.
11 Sep 1994: Defensive back Terry McDaniel of the Los Angeles Raiders returns an intereception for a touchdown during a game against the Seattle Seahawks at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in Los Angeles, California. The Seahawks won the game, 38-9.
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Photo by George Gojkovich/Getty Images
Photo by George Gojkovich/Getty Images

Teams played for:

  • Los Angeles/Oakland Raiders; 1988-1997
  • Seattle Seahawks; 1998

Dale Carter, Eric Berry and Terry McDaniel all stand out as the top defensive backs in Tennessee football history. However, McDaniel has the best combination of career longevity and peak value, so he tops this list.

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In the mid-1980s, McDaniel helped the Vols return to national prominence under Johnny Majors, winning an SEC title in 1985 and orchestrating a 10-win season in 1987. During his career on Rocky Top, he earned All-SEC honors and came away with six interceptions over his final three years, becoming a reliable star.

Afterward, the Los Angeles Raiders took him with the ninth pick in the 1988 NFL Draft, and he appeared in just two games that year. However, in 1989, he became one of their starting cornerbacks at 5’10” 180 pounds.

Over the next near-decade, McDaniel became a star, even as the Raiders moved to Oakland. He made five straight Pro Bowl appearances from 1992 to 1996 and earned four straight All-Pro honors from 1992 to 1995. This run included McDaniel becoming an interception machine as well. He was released by the Raiders in 1997 and spent his last year, 1998, with the Seattle Seahawks.

McDaniel appeared in 152 games and started in 137 of them. He had 35 career interceptions and six career pick sixes. Most notably, from 1992 to 1996, he never had fewer than four picks, and from 1993 to 1996, he never had fewer than five. In 1994, he had seven with two pick-sixes. Simply put, he’s Tennessee football’s most consistent defensive back ever in the pros.

For other posts ranking Tennessee football players at specific positions with the greatest NFL careers, please click here.

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