On Monday when Richard Seymour didn't show up for the Raiders practice, everyone began to panic. I suggested at the time that we give Seymour a few more days before we start getting impatient-- Wednesday to be specific.

Well, Wednesday has come and gone and still no Seymour.

The oddest thing about it is, no one seems to know much more now than they did on Monday. Just a few small details have come to light.

The Raiders are going to want their draft pick back if Seymour decides not to report. This seems obvious to some people. But oddly enough, there have been some conflicting reports as to whether the Raiders could indeed get their pick back if Seymour refuses to become a Raider. Even though these trades always hinge upon players reporting and passing physicals regardless of whether the NFL has approved the deal and reported the trade. 

A possible holdup could be the Raiders are attempting to reach an agreement on a longterm deal with Seymour. The same kind of deal he thought he was getting from the Patriots until Belichick went all Goodfellas on him. And since the Patriots are the NFL equivelant of organized crime, that makes some sense. 

Seymour thought he was finally going to be a made guy after being denied so many times before from the Pats. But when he was summoned to Belichick's office, instead of seeing a new contract in front of him, he was capped in the back of the head (so to speak). 

Talk about being done dirty.

On the other hand, it could have been his rat of an agent Eugene Parker that fed him misinformation (this is the same guy that is partially responsible for Michael Crabtree‘s holdout). Regardless, this whole deal has caught Seymour completely off guard, not to mention he is none too happy with his current predicament. Not many players would welcome this trade regardless of the team they were headed to. 

The thing is that we don't really know what is going on with the Raiders, the Patriots or Richard Seymour. Everyone is pleading the fifth. Bill Belichick is saying that Richard Seymour is not his concern anymore and Tom Cable simply refuses to comment. While the only thing we have heard from Seymour was second hand thru Rodney Harrison from Sunday night in which Seymour told Harrison he was "not thrilled" and talking about Seymour "getting whacked". Now the thinking is that he sees the Raiders as a death sentence which is why he seems to have entered the witness protection program.

When he resurfaces, it will be under one of a few circumstances:

1. He joins the Raiders to finish out his contract. At which point the Raiders will either franchise him or sign him long term. He will not be walking after one season after the team gave up a first rounder for him, no way that happens.

2. He works out a long-term deal with the Raiders prior to joining the team. This would likely be a deal between 3-4 years and between 7-10 million a season. Whatever it is, Al Davis will make him an offer he can't refuse.

3. The five day letter expires on the deal and he is sent back to the Patriots and the Raiders get their 2011 first round pick back.

4. (Least likely) He doesn't report to the Raiders and the team retains his rights and place him on the reserve/left list. This means that he will sit out the season unpaid and then have to play out the final year of his contract next season for the Raiders. This option gives the Raiders some leverage in the deal.

For now, this whole deal is a fugazzi and someone is going to end up with a horse head in their bed or sleeping with the fishes. Yes I watch too many mob flicks.

Comments (9)

great article
written by Henri, September 10, 2009

Hey Dizzle great acticle, I really like the Good Fellas and Donnie Brasco metaphors, I had a great laugh with the " he was capped in the back of the head (so to speak)." and fugazzi bit. keep them coming.

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fishy
written by Raids, September 10, 2009

Something isn't right about the whole trade.. People assume the 2011 pick was because of the cap on rookies,but it looks like this so-called hold-out may of been known! I think richy needs to understand that he is an animal at the zoo and not the zoo keeper.. 2many players in the NFL think its all about them,which is turning this gr8 sport into basketball.. The raiders are far from the worst team.he could have been dealt to DET-CINCY-KC-JETS-RAMS-TAMPA-CARO-DEN-BILLS- Most of those these when played by the raiders got pounded by the raiders until they finally woke up and saw we didn't have a QB to seal the deal... MUCH WORSE TEAMS THAN THE RAIDERS RICHY,and if you truly are just holdn out,stay out!!!!

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Great Breakdown
written by Junior99, September 10, 2009

Very good article and breakdown of the possible outcomes.

Fishy, while I and many other Raider fans would agree with your assessment that there are many worse teams that Seymour could have been traded to, the sad unfortunate truth is that the Raiders are thought of the worst team in the NFL by a lot of the players and management around the league. Call it hating, call it what you want, but the perception is out there in the league that you don't want to play for the Raiders. Some of this comes from bitter ex's like Sapp and Hall, but some of it is coming from guys like Gannon. I absolutely agree with you that there are worse franchises out there but unfortunately sometimes perception becomes reality.

Dizzle, about the 5 day letter. Doesn't somebody have to first issue the 5 day letter? It's my understanding that it would be New Englands responsibility to issue that letter. If that's the case, then NE has Al over a bit of a barrell. Why would they be in any hurry to get Seymour to report and help the Raiders. Like it or not, the longer he doesn't report doesn't reflect negatively on the Pats, but the Raiders. If it was the Raiders responsibility to issue the letter why wouldn't they have issued it by now to get him on the field for Monday and continue working on a long term deal.

I think the NFL will end up stepping in on this and forcing NE to file the 5 day letter. If he doesn't report then NE will take back Seymore and the Raiders will get their pick back.

Bottom line, let's move on like we won't have Seymour. It's doing nothing but distracting the team when they should be focused on winning with who is present. When you have players asking media what's going on with Seymour, it's obviously distracting. Let's move on without Seymour and kick some Charger ...

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Good read
written by Rafizzi fo shizzi, September 10, 2009

Found myself craken up;was frustrated at the whole Seymour situation but now I'm like whatever dude.We'll just have to run the ball awhole lot more to keep Rivers and LT off the field.

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Best Writing done by a writer on this subject!
written by e.gami, September 10, 2009

Loved the gangster analogy. As far as the information goes, I scoured the net and read it elsewhere already. I did however enjoy your article very much, for several reasons actually. You wrote the story in a unique way AND got all the facts right (there are a few more you left out, though nothing of consequence). This will allow many people to understand the Real potential outcomes as well as enjoy a very well written, entertaining article.

Great Job!

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Nice of you to point out the rats in this one
written by WCRaider, September 11, 2009

1. ESPN is incorrectly reporting the issuance of a five day letter.
2. You are correct that he has to report and pass a physical before the trade is finalized. He is still NE's property until he reports.
3. Bellicheat the bad guy? Say it ain't so, not with ESPN fondling him daily.

Good report.

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...
written by NuclearWinter, September 12, 2009

Yeah I thought it would be for a 3-4 year deal too, at least, but no less.
Hey WC, the five day letter hasn't been sent? Where'd you learn this

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...
written by NuclearWinter, September 12, 2009

Hmm, been reading about who has the rights to send the letter and it seems it would be the Pats if I'm not mistaken. But then also I'm reading Seymour has filed a grievance, that the Raiders can't send a letter because it's the right of the trading team, but that he'll report to us anyway.

This post made me happy to read.
http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2009/09/12/blindsided-seymour-says-hes-happy/

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Money has never been an
written by Raider X, May 02, 2010

Come on some.....The Raiders may be a lot of things to a lot of people, but one thing is for sure, the Raiders will pay if they want a player. It appears after last season the Raiders want Seymour, so money will not be an issue, of course there will be some issues, because there's always small language problems with contracts. Al and Cable know Seymour will be ready when he arrives at camp. I have no doubt it has all been agreed to before the language of the new contract began. Seymour is not going to get more money then the Raiders offer, and Parker knows it. He will get a one year contract next year if he doesn't sign with the Raiders, but he will not get a long term deal if he doesn't sign with the Raiders and his agent knows it. Let it go. He will be there when the gun goes off for the beginning of training camp. It wouldn't surprise me if the Raiders told him to stay away until the deal is signed, just because of his experience and age. He doesn't need to be there for practice. He will get 12 million when he plays this year, would you show up? Then next year he is a year older and it becomes more likely the one year deal is a for sure contract...I think Seymour is smarter then Parker...

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