Jairus Byrd Jairus Keelon Byrd ( born October 7 , 1986 ) is an American football free safety for the Buffalo Bills of the National Football League ( NFL ) . He played college football for the University of Oregon . He was drafted by the Bills in the second round of the 2009 NFL Draft . He is a two - time Pro Bowl selection . Early years . Byrd attended Clayton High School in St . Louis County , Missouri . He played quarterback , wide receiver , safety and special teams . As a senior he was the Missouri 4A offensive player of the year and played a large role in leading the school to the 2004 state championship . As a senior he rushed for 1 , 480 yards with 26 touchdowns , passed for 1 , 038 yards with 13 touchdowns , and made six receptions for 125 yards on offense . On defense he had 71 tackles , seven interceptions , three quarterback sack s and two fumble recoveries . He also had 10 kickoff returns , 15 punt returns , and 18 punts . College career . Byrd enrolled in the University of Oregon , where he played for the Oregon Ducks football team . As a freshman in 2005 , Byrd was red - shirt ed . In 2006 Byrd was a freshman All - American second - team selection by " The Sporting News " and was the Pac - 10 co - freshman player of the year ( alongside Taylor Mays and Alterraun Verner ) . He started the last 11 games at cornerback , recording 56 tackles and five interceptions . As a sophomore in 2007 Byrd was an All - Pac 10 conference honorable mention . He started all 13 games for the Ducks , recording 64 tackles , a sack , and a conference leading seven interceptions . As a junior in 2008 he was an all - Pac 10 first - team selection and was the defensive MVP of the 2008 Holiday Bowl . He started 13 games and finished with 83 tackles and five interceptions . Byrd finished his college career starting 37 of 39 games , with 203 tackles , 17 interceptions , a sack , two forced fumble s and four fumble recoveries . After the season Byrd announced that he would forgo his senior season and enter the 2009 NFL Draft . Professional career . Buffalo Bills . Byrd was drafted by the Buffalo Bills in the second round ( 42nd overall ) of the 2009 NFL Draft . After spending the first couple of games as a backup Byrd started his first career game at free safety against the Miami Dolphins due to injuries to both the Bills starting safeties Donte Whitner and Bryan Scott . He finished the game with three tackles . In his second start the next week Byrd recorded his first career interception off of Derek Anderson of the Cleveland Browns . Starting for the third straight week Byrd recorded two more interceptions off of Mark Sanchez of the New York Jets bringing his total to three . The next week against the Carolina Panthers Byrd had his second straight game of two interceptions , both of them coming off of Jake Delhomme , bringing his total to five . For his play , he was named the NFL Defensive Rookie of the Month for October . In week 8 against the Houston Texans , Byrd recorded two interceptions for the third consecutive week , bringing his total to seven . This tied an NFL record held by Dave Baker for consecutive games with two or more interceptions with three . After the Bills bye week Byrd intercepted his eighth pass of the season off of Vince Young of the Tennessee Titans . This was his fifth straight game with an interception , setting the team record for consecutive games with an interception . He intercepted his ninth pass of the season off of Matt Cassel of the Kansas City Chiefs . On December 23 Byrd was placed on season ending injured reserve . He finished the season starting 11 of 14 games , recording 45 tackles and nine interceptions . The nine interceptions were tied for the league lead and was five more than any other rookie had . For his play , he was selected to play in the Pro Bowl , becoming the first Bills rookie to be selected to play in a Pro Bowl since Greg Bell in 1984 . However , he was unable to play and was replaced by Brandon Meriweather . He was also a member of the " Sporting News " all - rookie team . On March 1 , 2013 , the Bills placed their franchise tag on Byrd after he was originally designated to become a free agent after the 2012 season . Personal . His father , Gill Byrd , played in the National Football League from 1983 to 1992 .