NFL All-Pro Team 2012: Jairus Byrd Makes Second Team

The 2012 NFL All-Pro Team rosters were released on Saturday morning by the Associated Press, and one Buffalo Bills player made the cut: safety Jairus Byrd was named to the second team as one of the four best safeties in the league.

Byrd becomes the first member of the Bills named to either All-Pro team since Kyle Williams in 2010. The last Bills player to be named to the first team was Brian Moorman in 2006. Byrd barely edged out Stevie Brown of the New York Giants, beating him by a 7-to-6 vote count. (The top three safeties - Earl Thomas, Dashon Goldson and Eric Weddle - got 28, 20 and 19 votes, respectively.)

What's interesting to note is Byrd's place on the squad despite not being worthy of a Pro Bowl nod. The AP notes Byrd is one of the two best safeties in the AFC, though Pro Bowl voters disagree. Still, playing the All-Pro card will be more lucrative than playing the Pro Bowl card for Byrd's agent in contract negotiations in the next few months.

Leodis McKelvin placed third in the kick returner category, missing out on being named to the second team by a half vote. The only other Bill to receive a vote was Eric Wood, who garnered a single vote at center. Former Bills running back Marshawn Lynch was named to the first team.