Richard Seymour

Richard Vershaun Seymour (born October 6, 1979) is an American former professional football player who was a defensive end in the National Football League (NFL) for the New England Patriots and Oakland Raiders. He played college football for the Georgia Bulldogs, and was drafted by the Patriots sixth overall in the 2001 NFL draft.

Seymour played in seven Pro Bowls, was named to five All-Pro teams, and was a member of three Super Bowl-winning Patriots teams. During his career, Seymour was considered to be one of the best defensive linemen in the NFL. Seymour was elected into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2022.

Seymour was selected to the Pro Bowl both as a 3-4 defensive end and as a 4-3 defensive tackle. He occasionally played fullback on short yardage and goal line situations. However, it was stopped when he suffered a knee injury on a one-yard Corey Dillon touchdown run against the San Diego Chargers in October 2005. After his football career, he became a professional poker player.

At Lower Richland High School in Hopkins, South Carolina, Seymour won first team All-Region honors, first team all-area honor. As a senior, he was voted the team's best defensive lineman, was a team captain, won an All-Area Player of the Week award, led his team to four All-Area Team of the Week honors, and finished the season with 8 sacks and 83 tackles.

Seymour attended the University of Georgia, where he played for the Bulldogs from 1997 to 2000. He was part of a defensive line that consisted of four future first-round draft picks: Seymour, former Jacksonville Jaguars defensive tackle Marcus Stroud, New Orleans Saints defensive end Charles Grant, and former Patriots teammate Johnathan Sullivan.

A housing and consumer economics major, Seymour was a four-year letterman at Georgia who played in 41 games for the Bulldogs, starting 25. He finished his career with 223 tackles (106 solos), 9.5 sacks, 25.5 tackles for losses and 35 quarterback pressures.

He was a first-team All-Southeastern Conference selection in 1999 and 2000. As a senior, Seymour was named a first-team All-American by the American Football Coaches Association and Walter Camp Football Foundation.

Seymour appeared in nine games during his 1997 freshman year at right defensive tackle, made two tackles and had a quarterback pressure. He also appeared in every game in 1998 as a sophomore and made 4 starts, finishing fourth on the team with 69 tackles (32 solos), 4 sacks and 14 quarterback pressures.