Here’s my theory on why Richard Seymour(notes) balked at reporting to the Raiders after being traded by the Patriots for a first-round draft pick last Sunday morning: Inside information. For two-plus years, Seymour had been exposed to Randy Moss(notes), whose career was revived after being shipped from Oakland to New England. I’m not exonerating Moss for having been a dog during his time with the Raiders; I’m simply saying that he likely had a very negative impression of his previous employer relative to his current one, and I’m guessing he wasn’t shy about sharing. Then, a month ago, the Patriots acquired defensive end Derrick Burgess(notes) from the Raiders, reportedly for third- and fifth-round picks. Now Seymour had someone in his position meetings who, I surmise, couldn’t contain his elation about having escaped a dysfunctional franchise for a first-class organization. Think Seymour heard a few horror stories about life with the silver-and-black? I do.
over 2 years ago
SlotMachinePlayer
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I think
Seymour is pissed he was shipped off to the fifth ring of hell. Who could blame him? It’s a bummer.
"I throw, you catch. It's NOT that hard!"
Peyton Manning, SNL, 2007
Who knew hell was so disfunctional?
The more you know, the more you know that you don't know.
by SlotMachinePlayer on Sep 11, 2009 5:03 PM EDT up reply actions
I'm sure that was a big part of it
My take is that the timing of the trade caught him completely off guard.
Seymour’s agent and the Pats brass had some unfruitful talks about his contract, with the Patriots offering an extension and Seymour rebuffing it. He wants a lucrative long-term contract with a juicy signing bonus to go along with it. Since the Patriots’ offer was probably a lot lower than he was looking for (no surprise), and Seymour’s distaste for the idea of a ‘hometown discount’ well known, it appeared this would be his last year as a Patriot.
I think that Seymour and his agent thought they were holding all the cards. He was primed to have a beast of a year in ‘09, in part because he’s still a terrific player and in part as an audition for his next contract. The Patriots did hold one card though, and they played it, trading him to the one team that gave them more bang than they imagined they’d get. I don’t think the Patriots were actively looking to trade him, but listened to offers accepted the one from the Raiders because it was too good to pass up – not as a punishment for Seymour or anything ridiculous like that.
Seymour thought he would be able to just walk away at the end of the year as a free agent in full control of his destiny, and field the many offers as they came in. This twist took him down an unexpected and unwanted path and he’ll have to decide the best way to get to where he wants to be.
Keep the faith!
Irrespective of contract wranglings..
Anyone have a feeling whether Seymour’s trade is an indication of faith in
a) Brace
b) Pryor
c) Burgess
d) Banta-Cain
e) all of the above?
f) some combination of the above?
indication of faith in the offense
that they’ll cover enough mistakes until the defense gets comfortable (or until I personally am comfortable with them hopefully)
The guys in the unit know they have to step it up, especially with Seymour gone. We’ll see if they can do it.
Watching SB XXXVI the other night reminded me just how good our defense was that year, keeping the Patriots in the game against that Rams offense. A great game plan executed perfectly. I’d love to see the Patriots build a strong defensive unit like that again.
Keep the faith!
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