When the New England Patriots selected Sebastian Vollmer in the second round of the 2009 NFL draft, he was almost universally considered a reach. After all, the German-born offensive tackle was not even invited to the scouting combine. The Patriots did not care, they saw and liked Vollmer’s potential - and they were right.
Over the next eight seasons, the Houston product appeared in 98 total games for New England. He became the team’s unquestioned right tackle – and left tackle, when need be – and was part of the starting lineup in 90 contests; among them two Super Bowls. Along the way, he established himself as one of the NFL’s premier tackles, earning two Super Bowl rings (2014, 2016) as well as All Pro honors (2010).
Besides his stellar play, injuries were another constant throughout Vollmer’s NFL career. He appeared in all 16 regular season games only once in his career (2010) and ended three of his eight year’s in New England on injured reserve. Among them was the 2016 season, which Vollmer missed in its entirety due to multiple physical issues.
On March 3, the Patriots pulled the plug and let the veteran, who had lost his starting job to Marcus Cannon, go. Since his release, Vollmer has been a free agent – and according to an appearance on Sirius XM earlier today, he does not plan on returning to the league, effectively confirming his retirement. The 32-year old also pointed out that he had lost 75 pounds from his playing weight of 320 lbs.
While Vollmer did not reveal his post-retirement plans, going into broadcasting seems to be his career path of choice. Currently, he is part of NFL Films’ broadcasting boot camp and has also analyzed games on German television in the past. In short: He would be a great and experienced addition to pro football’s media corps.
But whatever the choice will be: Good luck, Sebastian, and thank you for a terrific career!