The New England Patriots currently have a very large hole to fill on defense. It was announced on Monday that defensive veteran Vince Wilfork will miss the remainder of the 2013 season after tearing his Achilles Sunday night against the Atlanta Falcons. While the Patriots are 4-0, the loss of the Pro Bowler is a big one. Bill Belichick made notion that the Patriots would replace Wilfork from within, which is good news to Richard Seymour because he is not interested in helping out.
Seymour has been sitting on the free agent market since getting released from the Oakland Raiders. The veteran had little interest surrounding him prior to the season kicking off. At one point, the defensive lineman appeared ready to sign with the Atlanta Falcons. However, contract negotiations stalled as the team made Matt Ryan's contract a priority over Seymour.
The Patriots originally drafted Seymour back in 2001. He spent the first eight years of his career there before signing over with the Raiders. The 33-year old was thought to possibly be an option to replace Wilfork after the season-ending injury, something he just laughed at.
When asked by Rob Borges of the Boston Herald about a possible return to the Patriots, Seymour simply said, "No way." So that is that. There is no confirmation that the Patriots were even looking at Seymour, but he is already shooting down any chance that they might consider him interested.
The 33-year old claims to still be able to be productive on the football player, but has likely priced himself out of any potential contract. The seven-time Pro Bowl player wanted a multi-year contract, but no one was willing to give him anything more than the veteran's minimum. Instead, Seymour says he is focused on earning his private pilot's license.
So instead, it appears undrafted rookie Joe Vellano will be the replacement for Wilfork. Belichick was complimentary of the work the rookie has shown so far with the team. While he believes Vellano certainly has improvements to make, his work ethic shows promise.
"I think that there are a lot of things that he's improved in, in terms of technique and recognition and reaction and all that. He's still got a long way to go but definitely making progress. He works hard every day," Belichick said.
