Tom Cousineau Thomas Michael Cousineau ( born May 6 , 1957 ) is a former American college and professional football player who was a linebacker in the Canadian Football League ( CFL ) and National Football League ( NFL ) for nine seasons during the 1970s and 1980s . He played college football for Ohio State University , and earned All - American honors . He was the first overall pick of the 1979 NFL Draft , and played professionally for the CFL ' s Montreal Alouettes and the NFL ' s Cleveland Browns and San Francisco 49ers . Early years . Cousineau was born in Fairview Park , Ohio . He played high school football for St . Edward High School in Lakewood , Ohio and was one of the most highly - recruited football players in the country in his senior year . He graduated in 1975 . College career . Cousineau decided to attend Ohio State University , where he played for coach Woody Hayes ' Ohio State Buckeyes football team from 1975 to 1978 . He was a consensus first - team All - American , and broke a school record with 211 tackles in a single season in 1978 . He also broke a school record for most tackles in a game with 29 , was the MVP of the Orange Bowl , and remains second on the school ' s all - time tackles list with 569 . Professional career . Cousineau was drafted first overall in the 1979 NFL Draft by the Buffalo Bills , who acquired the pick from the San Francisco 49ers in a trade for O . J . Simpson . Cousineau never played a game with the Bills . He instead signed with the Canadian Football League Montreal Alouettes where they offered double the money that the Bills originally offered . Cousineau became a star there , becoming the Grey Cup Most Valuable Player in the 1979 season . Cousineau wanted to return to the NFL , and in 1982 the Houston Oilers attempted to sign him , but the Bills ( who still held Cousineau ' s NFL rights ) matched the offer . He was then traded from the Bills to the Cleveland Browns for a first round draft choice ( 14th overall ) in the 1983 NFL Draft . That pick was used on future Hall of Fame quarterback Jim Kelly . Cousineau signed a five - year contract for 2 . 5 million dollars , the most ever for a Cleveland Brown player at the time . During Cousineau ' s four seasons with the Browns , he led the team in tackles for three seasons . He was named a 2nd - team All - NFL by the NEA in 1983 , and by the AP in 1984 , but never made the Pro Bowl in his career . He was considered an overpaid disappointment in Cleveland , while Bills fans fondly remember the fact that the man who once snubbed them for the CFL was traded for Jim Kelly . Cousineau signed with the San Francisco 49ers as a free agent after the 1985 season where he played two years as a reserve before retiring in 1987 . Cousineau finished his NFL career with ten interception s and 6 . 5 career sacks and currently stays at home with his wife , Lisa , and two daughters , Kyle and Kacey , in Akron , Ohio and renovates houses . After retiring as a player . St . Edward inducted Cousineau to the school ' s Athletic Hall of Fame . He married Lisa June 16 , 1990 , and has 2 daughters Kyle and Kacey . On February 8 , 2006 , Cousineau announced plans to run for a seat in the Ohio House of Representatives as a Republican in the Akron , Ohio area . He won the May primary but lost the November election to Democrat Brian Williams by a margin of 58 % to 42 % . On April 20 , 2009 , Cousineau joined the St . Vincent – St . Mary High School football coaching staff as a linebackers coach .