// Workers AI · dad joke modeWhat did Ray Seals say to his date? You seal my heart.
| No. 98, 97, 99 | |
|---|---|
| Position | Defensive end |
| Personal information | |
| Born | June 17, 1965 Syracuse, New York, U.S. |
| Died | April 4, 2025 (aged 59) Tampa, Florida, U.S. |
| Listed height | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) |
| Listed weight | 293 lb (133 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Henninger (Syracuse) |
| Career history | |
| |
* Offseason or practice squad member only | |
| Stats at Pro Football Reference | |
Raymond Bernard Seals (June 17, 1965 – April 4, 2025) was an American professional football player who was a defensive end in the National Football League (NFL). He was notable for being one of the rare players to have made it to the NFL without ever having to attend college.[1] Seals started in Super Bowl XXX[2] as a member of the Pittsburgh Steelers.[3]
Playing career
[edit]Seals lettered in football at Anthony A. Henninger High School in Syracuse, New York.
Seals went from playing for the minor-league Syracuse Express of the Empire Football League[4] to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 1989. He went to the Steelers in 1994 as a free agent and played two seasons as their starting right defensive end.[5] He was injured in 1996, his third season with the Steelers, and finished with Carolina in 1997.
Raymond was famous for batting away a pass by then rookie quarterback Brett Favre, only to have it be caught by Favre himself, for the first completion in his long and storied career.[6]
Personal life and death
[edit]Seals was inducted into the American Football Association's Semi-Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1992.[7] Seals's cousin, Jonny Gammage, was killed after a traffic stop by Brentwood police officers in 1995.[8][9]
Seals died in Tampa, Florida on April 4, 2025, at the age of 59.[10][11]
References
[edit]- ↑ Jeff.Hartman (August 20, 2016). "How former Steelers DE Ray Seals made it to the NFL without playing college football". Behind the Steel Curtain. Retrieved December 3, 2021.
- ↑ "Super Bowl XXX - Dallas Cowboys vs. Pittsburgh Steelers - January 28th, 1996". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved April 17, 2025.
- ↑ "SPORTS PEOPLE: FOOTBALL; Steelers Add Ex-Buccaneer". The New York Times. March 18, 1994. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved December 3, 2021.
- ↑ Kramer, Lindsay (April 5, 2025). "Ray Seals, former Henninger lineman who skipped college en route to NFL, dies at age 59: 'Man, he was rare'". syracuse. Retrieved April 17, 2025.
- ↑ "1994 Pittsburgh Steelers Rosters, Stats, Schedule, Team Draftees". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved April 17, 2025.
- ↑ "Ray Seals once again fails to hear the Greater Syracuse Sports Hall of Fame call his name". Syracuse.com. July 13, 2015. Retrieved April 10, 2023.
- ↑ "Ray Seals goes from doorman to Super Bowl to Hall of Fame". syracuse. June 8, 2016. Retrieved December 3, 2021.
- ↑ "Death of Football Player's Cousin Raises Cry of Racism : Police: Pittsburgh Steeler's relative died after struggle with white officers. Charges are weighed amid protests". Los Angeles Times. November 16, 1995. Retrieved December 3, 2021.
- ↑ Ap (November 5, 1995). "5 Police Officers in Pittsburgh Facing Charges in Beating Death". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved December 3, 2021.
- ↑ Strackbein, Noah (April 4, 2025). "Former Steelers Defender Dies". Sports Illustrated.
- ↑ Raymond B. Seals
External links
[edit]- 1965 births
- 2025 deaths
- American football defensive ends
- Carolina Panthers players
- Players of American football from Syracuse, New York
- Pittsburgh Steelers players
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers players
- 21st-century African-American sportsmen
- 20th-century African-American sportsmen
- 20th-century American sportsmen
- 21st-century American sportsmen