FLOWERY BRANCH -- Falcons defensive coordinator Dean Pees spent five seasons in New England with defensive lineman Richard Seymour, who’s set to be enshrined into the Pro Football Hall of Fame on Saturday.
“He was a monster out there for us,” Pees said. “He’s kind of the last of the two-gap ends. (Seymour) and Ty Warren could actually two-gap guys and could really play both gaps. He’s kind of the last of that dying breed. You don’t see those guys out there anymore.”
Seymour, who played at Georgia, played for the Patriots from 2001-08. He played with the Raiders from 2009-12 and was a seven-time Pro Bowler.
Pees was the Patriots linebackers coach in 2004 and 2005. He was the defensive coordinator from 2006-09.
“But surprisingly (he was so) athletic for as big as he was,” Pees said of Seymour, who played at 6-foot-6 and 317 pounds. “I mean the other thing is that when he got his hands up. ... He was a handful.”
Seymour did a lot of the dirty work for the Patriots.
“The good thing was it made guys like (Tedy) Bruschi and (Junior) Seau pretty good inside backers, too,” Pees said. “It made those guys’ life a lot easier because it was hard for them to scoop and get up onto the second level. Guys like that, they’re hard to find anymore and he was just a great person.”
