Former New England Patriots defensive tackle Richard Seymour is part of the Class of 2022 set to be enshrined into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio on Saturday afternoon.
Seymour, who was drafted out of the University of Georgia with the sixth overall pick by New England in 2001, helped lead the Patriots to their first three Super Bowl wins (2001, 2003, 2004). At Georgia, he was a First Team All-American in 2000 and a two-time First Team All-SEC player in 1999 and 2000. His accomplishments in Foxborough include being part of the New England Patriots All-2000s Team, the Patriots 50th Anniversary Team, and also being inducted into the New England Patriots Hall of Fame. He earned honors on the All-NFL Rookie Team courtesy of Pro Football Writers of America in 2001, is a three-time First Team All-Pro (2003, 2004, 2005), two-time Second Team All-Pro (2006, 2011), made seven NFL Pro Bowls, and is on the NFL 2000s All-Decade Team. His best seasons came in 2003 and 2008 with the Patriots. In 2003, he registered eight sacks and 34 solo tackles (57 combo tackles), and in 2008 had another eight sacks with 35 solo tackles (52 combo tackles). He had four career forced fumbles (one for a touchdown return of 68 yards), two interceptions, and played in a total of 164 games (157 starts). He played the final four years (12 years overall) with the Oakland Raiders, retiring from the league in February 2013 because of injury that forced him to miss the final eight games in the 2012 campaign with the Raiders. He finished as one of the best defensive tackles the league has ever seen with 496 career tackles and 57.5 sacks.
Seymour will join seven others that will also be inducted beginning at 12 noon on Saturday at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium in Canton including-
Tony Boselli, Tackle 1995-2001 Jacksonville Jaguars
Leroy Butler, Safety 1990-2001 Green Bay Packers
Bryant Young, Defensive Tackle/Defensive End 1994-2007 San Francisco 49ers
Sam Mills, Linebacker 1986-1994 New Orleans Saints/1995-1997 Carolina Panthers
Cliff Branch, Wide Receiver 1972-1985 Los Angeles/Oakland Raiders (deceased 8/3/19)
Dick Vermeil, Head Coach 1976-1982 Philadelphia Eagles/1997-1999 St. Louis Rams/2001-2005 Kansas City Chiefs
Art McNally- Referee/NFL Adminstrator 1959-2015
