FOXBOROUGH, Mass. - The New England Patriots placed veteran linebacker Junior Seau on the reserve/injured list today with an arm injury. The 17-year veteran will miss the remainder of the 2006 season.
Seau, 37, was signed by the Patriots as a free agent on Aug. 18, 2006 and played in each of the first 11 games of the season while making 10 starts. He recorded 70 tackles (37 solo) this season, a total that ranks fourth on the team. Seau led the team in tackles twice in 2006 and recorded a season-high 15 tackles in a game against the New York Jets on Nov. 12.
The University of Southern California product has played in 241 career games with 237 starts for the San Diego Chargers (1990-2002), Miami Dolphins (2003-05) and New England Patriots (2006). The 6-foot-3-inch, 248-pound linebacker has recorded 1,794 career tackles (1,380 solo), including 53.0 sacks for 318.5 yards, 15 interceptions for 210 yards, 94 passes defensed, 12 forced fumbles and 17 fumble recoveries, including one returned for a touchdown. Seau earned 12 consecutive Pro Bowl selections from 1992-2003 and was named to the Pro Football Hall of Fame's All-Decade Team of the 1990s. He has been an Associated Press first team All-Pro selection six times (1992-94, 1996, 1998, 2000) and has been a second-team All-Pro on two occasions (1995, 1999). In recognition of his off-the-field achievements, he was named the NFL's Man of the Year in 1994.
Seau was originally drafted by the Chargers with the fifth overall selection in the 1990 NFL Draft. In his 13-year career with San Diego (1990-2002), Seau played in 200 games, tying him for first on the Chargers' all-time list. He was selected as the Chargers' Most Valuable Player a team-record six times and led the team in tackles in eight of his 13 seasons in San Diego. The University of Southern California product missed only seven games over a 14-year span from 1990-2003.
He was traded by the Chargers to the Miami Dolphins on April 16, 2003 in exchange for a fifth-round draft choice. In his first year with Miami, he started all 15 games in which he played and finished second on the team with 133 tackles (81 solo), including three sacks. Over his last two seasons with Miami (2004-05), Seau started 13 of 15 games while recording a total of 101 tackles.
