. . World News – CA – Kevon Seymour was not in the NFL working in an auto customizing shop. Now he’s an Eagles corner.

Jeremy Logsdon, owner of an auto customizing shop in Charlotte, N. . C.. . was at home on Sunday with Christmas presents, in the background the game Saints-Eagles on TV.

Logsdon heard a familiar name. Kevon Seymour, signed to the Eagles training team on December. 2, and then called up to play against New Orleans, made a special team tackle. As the game progressed, injuries dictated that Seymour’s first Eagles game – also his first NFL game since 2017 – would include 35 cornerback snaps.

« It was really exciting to hear his name on the national stage again, » said Logsdon. He said the gift wrapping had faded into the background for a while. “It was nice to see and do what he loves again, man; He was so passionate. ”

Logsdon first knew Seymour as one of several Carolina Panthers who brought cars to Logsdon’s store, the Wheel & Tire Exchange. After Seymour recovered from an operation on both shoulders that took away the 2018 season and wrist surgery that kept him off the field and without a contract in 2019, Logsdon knew Seymour as an employee.

Seymour, 27, a 2016 sixth round draft pick from USC’s Buffalo Bills, spent about a year selling Logsdon to care for his wife and three children while Seymour also bought a gym membership replacing them for a practice facility and struggling to keep his football career alive.

« They actually gave me a job, » said Seymour on Thursday. “I did something other than soccer, something I loved. Work with customers and interact with people. I only did this to keep my mind free, to keep my mind free and clear, so as not to get caught up in the actual situation . . . where I was and how things weren’t going the way I wanted them to be. I tried to stay as positive as possible by getting out there and doing things.

Seymour, traded from the Bills to the Panthers in 2017, played 31 NFL games in 2016 and 17 seasons, starting at five, before injuries piled up.

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« Really good guy, » former Eagles recipient Torrey Smith recalled Thursday. Smith played with Seymour on the Panthers in 2018 and was released by them simultaneously in September 2019. “He worked extremely hard. Many questions asked. He’s the guy who really gets it. We had a lot of conversations beyond the game. ”

Eagle’s safety / corner of Jalen Mills also mentioned Seymour asking questions. This is something to do when you join a team in December and try to learn defense quickly.

Seymour could play a big role against DeAndre Hopkins, Christian Kirk and Larry Fitzgerald this weekend in Arizona. The Eagles are missing the corner of Avonte Maddox (knee) and the other starting corner, Darius Slay, is still working his way through the concussion protocol.

« Asking so many questions – how can he align himself like that? How do we play this Why are we doing this Why are we doing this When you see that in a man – he told me he hasn’t been in football for two years – you know he’s not content with just being here, ”Mills said on Thursday. « He’s the type of guy who wants to keep improving his game. ”

« It’s been a journey, » admitted Seymour. “I just want to thank God for giving me the opportunity. I was at a low point. But I’m at the bottom so bottoming out was nothing new. ”

Seymour said one major concern as he struggled to save his career was “giving my children a better life than me and having a two-parent household, something I didn’t grow up [in Pasadena , Calif. ]]. All that stuff went through my head during that time. Because this is actually my first time, like sitting down, being home, and it’s up to me to get back to training.

« I could have just given up. I graduated, me and my wife, we graduated. I could have gone a different route – « It’s over, no hope how it goes this year. « . « But I always believed and I just kept believing and God gave me the opportunity [with the eagles] and I just took advantage of it. « . ”

Logsdon said the idea that Seymour would work in the business popped up before Seymour actually needed a job. He said Seymour – who stated Thursday that « I love cars » – likes to hang around the store and be open-minded. He would record conversations with other customers and give them his thoughts on what to do with their cars. When Logsdon and Sales Manager Greg Mitchell met the new customer, they found they had already made a sale. You’d be joking that Seymour should go to work there.

« He was a good visionary, » said Logsdon. Once he said to us, ‘Hey, man. Things didn’t go quite as I thought. This little injury I’m working on – do you need help? « Logsdon said he didn’t hesitate to say yes.

The job consisted mostly of sales, but Logsdon said Seymour « would be the first to open a hood and pull a power section off the top of the engine » and « wasn’t afraid to grab a jack if he had to. ». « . … He earned his keep. ”

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It was always clear to Logsdon that Seymour, 6 feet, 186, wanted back to the NFL. During slow times in the store, he did exercises. The guys in the store knew he’d joined the Eagles’ training team, didn’t know he’d be playing anytime soon.

Eagle’s defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz said that second coach Marquand Manuel was quick to try to bring Seymour up to speed when Maddox and then Slay left the field.

« Key came in and we actually put a few things on the sidelines, » Schwartz said. “It was like, ‘Okay, we have to do this,’ and he processed it in his own way on the sidelines. I thought Marquand did a really good job with him during the game, telling me what we were comfortable with on the schedule, what he was comfortable with. ”

Schwartz said he liked that Seymour wasn’t bothered to give Emmanuel Sanders a touchdown.

“Came back and kept fighting and playing physical soccer. I was proud of him for that. It was a big step for his career, ”said Schwartz. “He had been a bit distracted, but to get back on the field and win football this is a real tip for him, stand ready to keep his faith in difficult times and he was rewarded for that and we were were rewarded for it. ”

Logsdon said he doesn’t want to disturb Seymour as he gets used to the Eagles but he really wants to « break his stones » for giving up the touchdown.

« I can hear him now – » He was lucky! It won’t happen again! « Said Logsdon.

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