Rik Bonness

Rik Bonness

No. 54, 53
Position:	Linebacker
Personal information
Date of birth:	(1954-03-20) March 20, 1954
Place of birth:	Borger, Texas
Career information
High school:	Bellevue (NE) East
College:	Nebraska
NFL draft:	1976 / Round: 3 / Pick: 84
Career history
Oakland Raiders (1976) Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1977–1979) New York Giants (1980)
Career highlights and awards
Consensus All-American (1975)
Career NFL statistics
Games played: 59 Games started: 2 Player stats at NFL.com
Player stats at PFR

Richard Kyes "Rik" Bonness (born March 20, 1954) is an American former college and professional football player who was linebacker for four seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the University of Nebraska, and earned All-American honors. Afterward, he played professionally for the NFL's Oakland Raiders and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Bonness played high school football at Bellevue High School in Bellevue, Nebraska, a suburb south of Omaha. He graduated from high school in 1972 and then received a scholarship to attend the University of Nebraska, where he played for the Nebraska Cornhuskers football team. He played center on the Conrnhuskers offensive line. Following his 1975 senior season, Bonness was recognized as a consensus first-team All-American, having received first-team honors from Associated Press (AP), United Press International (UPI), Walter Camp Football Foundation (WCFF), American Football Coaches Association (AFCA), Football Writers Association of America (FWAA), and Football News.

The Oakland Raiders chose Bonness in the third round (84th overall pick) of the 1976 NFL Draft. He played linebacker for a total of 59 NFL games across four seasons for the Raiders (1976), Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1977–1979) and New York Giants (1980). He saw no regular season action in 1980.