New England Patriots 2001–02 Seymour was drafted by the Patriots in the first round (sixth overall) of the
2001 NFL draft. On July 24, 2001, the Patriots signed Seymour to a six-year, $14.3 million contract. He played in 13 games in his
2001 rookie season, starting 10 of them, amassing three sacks mainly as a 4-3 defensive tackle. Seymour missed the season opener against the
Cincinnati Bengals as well as two late October games with a leg injury. In
Super Bowl XXXVI, Seymour started at defensive tackle and earned a
Super Bowl ring for the Patriots' victory over the
St. Louis Rams. The
2002 season saw Seymour starting all 16 games at 4-3 defensive tackle in his second season in the NFL, collecting 5.5 sacks and an interception en route to his first
Pro Bowl appearance. Seymour also had a presence on special teams, blocking field goals in back-to-back November games against the
Oakland Raiders and
Minnesota Vikings.
2003–04 With the Patriots defense moving to a 3–4 in
2003, Seymour moved outside to defensive end in the scheme and was also named a defensive team captain for the first time in his career. Despite missing a game against the
Denver Broncos in October due to a leg injury, Seymour finished with a career-high eight sacks and 57 tackles in 15 games played (14 starts). He was twice named AFC Special Teams Player of the Week, after blocked field goals against the
Miami Dolphins in week 7 and the
Tennessee Titans in the
divisional playoffs. Seymour and the Patriots would go to win their second championship in three years, defeating the
Carolina Panthers in
Super Bowl XXXVIII. Seymour was elected to the
2004 Pro Bowl and was a first-team
All-Pro selection following the season. Seymour started all 15 games he played in during the
2004 season, but missed the final regular season and first two
playoff games against the
Indianapolis Colts and
Pittsburgh Steelers after injuring the
MCL in his right knee in week 16. He also recorded the first touchdown of his career on a 68-yard fumble return against the
Buffalo Bills in week 4. Seymour's tackle and sack numbers dipped slightly from the previous season to 39 tackles and five sacks, but he was still named to his third consecutive
Pro Bowl and was again a first-team
All-Pro choice. Seymour earned his third Super Bowl win with a Patriots victory over the
Philadelphia Eagles in
Super Bowl XXXIX, a game he started.
2005–08 Entering the final year of his rookie contract, Seymour held out of the
2005 offseason minicamps and missed the first four days of training camp in hopes of securing a new contract. While the Patriots did not fulfill Seymour's request, they did give him a pay raise for the 2005 season in order to end his holdout. In April 2006, Seymour signed a three-year, $30 million contract extension through the 2009 season. The
2006 season was the third consecutive in which Seymour endured an injury; a left elbow injury suffered in week 7 lingered throughout the season and cost Seymour a start in week 8, but Seymour still appeared in all 16 regular season games and the playoffs. Seymour was fined $7,500 by the NFL for stepping on
Indianapolis Colts offensive tackle
Tarik Glenn during a November 5, 2006, game. Seymour was reportedly angered that Glenn was diving for his knees. Regardless, Seymour professed his regret for the incident and stated he would apologize to Glenn at their next meeting. Seymour, who also had a groin injury and admitted he was not 100 percent, tallied four sacks, 40 tackles, and a blocked field goal on the season. He was named to the
2007 Pro Bowl, his fifth straight, and was a second-team
All-Pro selection. However, he did not play in the Pro Bowl for the second straight season. In the
2007 offseason, Seymour had surgery on the left knee he had originally injured more than two years prior, an injury he said had hampered his conditioning and play during the 2005 and 2006 seasons. The surgery kept Seymour out of training camp and the preseason, and eventually the Patriots decided to keep Seymour on the
Physically Unable to Perform list, keeping him out at least the first six weeks of the regular season. Seymour was activated from the PUP on October 27, and played the balance of the regular season and the playoffs, including
Super Bowl XLII, a loss to the
New York Giants. Recording 23 tackles and 1.5 sacks, Seymour was not named to the Pro Bowl or the All-Pro team for the first time since his rookie season. The
2008 season proved to be a much healthier one for Seymour, who started the first 15 games, only to miss the season finale against the
Buffalo Bills with a back injury.
Oakland Raiders 2009 season On September 6, 2009, the Patriots traded Seymour, who was entering the final year of his contract, to the
Oakland Raiders for a first-round pick in the
2011 NFL draft that the Patriots would use to select
Nate Solder. Seymour refused to report to the Raiders in the days following the trade, reportedly unhappy about being traded to the team. The
Boston Herald,
Boston Globe, and National Football Post all claimed that on or before September 10, the Raiders sent Seymour a formal letter ordering him to report within five days or risk being placed on the reserve/left squad list, which would prevent him from playing for any team in 2009, and thus would prevent him from achieving free agency until he played out his contract in 2010. The
Herald reported that Seymour was in fact in possession of that letter. The next day, on September 11, he was placed on the team's exempt/left squad list. On September 12, the
Globe reported Seymour reported to the Raiders after the
Herald had reported that Seymour felt "blindsided" by the trade. Seymour said there were "personal issues" concerning his family and that an
NFLPA grievance filed on his behalf, which claimed the Raiders were not allowed to send him a five-day letter, was a "procedural thing." The NFLPA dropped the grievance shortly after, calling it a "moot point." He did report to the team on September 12, and started in the team's first game on September 14
2010 season On February 24, 2010, the Raiders gave Seymour the
franchise tag. The Raiders and Seymour negotiated a long-term contract, but Seymour opted to sign a one-year deal worth $12.4 million on June 19, 2010. Throughout the
2010 NFL season, he was a starting left defensive tackle next to
Tommy Kelly on the Raiders defensive line. He was ejected during a game in Pittsburgh on November 21 for punching Steelers QB
Ben Roethlisberger. He was later fined $25,000 for his actions. For his play, Seymour was selected to his sixth career
Pro Bowl, but did not play due to a hamstring injury and was replaced by
Kyle Williams. He was ranked 66th by his fellow players on the
NFL Top 100 Players of 2011.
2011 season On February 17, 2011, Seymour agreed to a two-year, $30 million contract extension, making him the highest paid defensive player in the NFL. On opening day of the
2011 NFL season, still at left defensive tackle next to
Tommy Kelly, he recorded 2 sacks and 3 tackles as the Raiders defeated the
Denver Broncos. He recorded 29 tackles and 6 sacks during the season. Seymour was one of four Raiders selected to attend the
2012 Pro Bowl.
2012 season On November 2, Seymour was fined $15,750 for hitting his former teammate,
Kansas City Chiefs quarterback
Matt Cassel. On February 8, 2013, the Raiders voided the rest of Seymour's contract, effectively making him a free agent. The contract stipulated if Seymour did not meet a certain amount of allotted playing time the Raiders would have the option of voiding the final year of the deal. Due to an injury, he missed the final eight games of 2012 and was not able to meet the required amount of playing time. He was set to make $19.12 million in 2013; he counted as $13.71 million of dead money for 2013. After he became a free agent, he drew interests and received offers from multiple teams but was mostly tied to the
Atlanta Falcons. It was reported that if he was unable to get the contract he was seeking he would retire. ==NFL career statistics==