When you talk about cornerstones of a dynasty you need to tread very carefully. But you can put your foot down on that block when talking about Richard Seymour. No one knew on April 21st 2001 that was what the Patriots were getting. Or that a dynasty’s foundation was being built. But it’s safe to say now that dynasty wouldn’t exist without Richard Syemour.
Want an example of how important Richard Seymour was to the Patriots defense in the early 2000's? Tedy Bruschi makes it very simple. "Can you see me?!" Bruschi hid behind Big Sey and was able to come free and make plays. @ABC6 #ForeverNE @BigSey93 @TedyBruschi pic.twitter.com/gKhaiwJEXL — Ian Steele (@IanSteeleABC6) February 11, 2022
A man who never filled up the stats sheets Seymour set his mark by demanding double and triple teams in the patriots 3-4 defense. A reason he moved around the line so much. Inside – outside – spread out wide, King Richard was always the center of a defensive coordinators game plan. Find 93 and keep him out of our quarterback’s chest.
A Hall Of Fame play by Richard Seymour was spotlighted just the other night in The Tuck Rule 30 For 30, when he blew up a third-and-1 run, leading to a punt to give New England the chance to tie the game late in the fourth quarter. pic.twitter.com/wTxEMbB2un — Michael Hurley (@michaelFhurley) February 11, 2022
In his 164 regular season games Seymour racked up 498 tackles, 326 of them solo and 57.5 sacks. But his numbers like I said were never indicative of this man’s talents or the fear he struck into the opposition. The respect he earned around the league came early and remained throughout his career. As did the accolades he received. Both teammates and opponents over the years uttered his name with the same respect.
The joy of two of Richard Seymour’s teammates — Ty Law and Willie McGinest — adds more Patriots flavor to Seymour’s special night. pic.twitter.com/8NvmXVJksc — Mike Reiss (@MikeReiss) February 11, 2022
Football is Just Different
While MLB – NHL and NBA use stats to push or pull players from their Halls of Fame the NFL is a different animal. Voters look past stats and they see the way a player changed the game. How they dominated their era in the sport. Seven times a Pro-Bowler – Three times first team All-Pro – Twice a second team All-Pro . NFL All 2000’s and most importantly three Times a Super Bowl Champion. Now that’s Dominant. That’s a game changer. Now in just his fourth year on the ballot a Pro Football Hall of Famer. And it was overdue.
As always you can follow / give me grief on Twitter @Tmurph297
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