Sean Lee

Sean Patrick Lee (born July 22, 1986) is an American former professional football player who was a linebacker in the National Football League (NFL). Nicknamed “the General”, he played college football for the Penn State Nittany Lions and was selected by the Cowboys in the second round of the 2010 NFL draft. He made two Pro Bowls and the 2016 All-Pro Team.

Early life He is the son of Craig Lee and Geralyn Lee of Upper St. Clair Township, Pennsylvania. Lee's older brother Conor was the placekicker for the University of Pittsburgh and his sister Alexandra was a student athlete at Upper St. Clair High School. Sean is also a grandson of Federal Judge Donald J. Lee of the United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania.

Lee was a multisport star at Upper St. Clair High School outside Pittsburgh; he was a three-year starter at point guard in basketball, averaging 21.2 points, 9.1 rebounds, and 3.2 assists as a senior, and won a district title. Despite being forced to take a medical redshirt for the 2008 season, Lee's teammates elected him a team captain that season. While rehabilitating, he opted to serve as an undergraduate assistant coach, participating in every practice and wearing a headset on the sidelines during games that season.

Lee's teammates again elected him team captain prior to the 2009 season.

College awards and honors 2010 Capital One Bowl champion 2009 Penn State Nittany Lions football team Captain 2007 Alamo Bowl champion 2007 Alamo Bowl Defensive MVP 2007 Pro Football Weekly All-American He was named Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week after his effort in the Florida International game on September 1, 2007, and again following Penn State's 31–6 victory over Temple on September 19, 2009. He was named Big Ten co-Defensive Player of the Week with Ohio State's James Laurinaitis following his efforts in the Purdue game on November 3, 2007.

Professional career

2010 season The Dallas Cowboys selected Lee in the second round (55th overall) of the 2010 NFL draft. The Cowboys traded their second-round (59th overall) and their fourth-round picks (125th overall) in the 2010 NFL Draft to the Philadelphia Eagles to move up from to 55th overall in the second round to select Lee. His considerable fall from the first round was thought to be due to his history of injuries, which included a torn ACL on the right knee and partially torn ACL on the left knee during his last two seasons at Penn State, and throughout his career, injuries had indeed prevented Lee from playing a full season's slate of NFL games. Lee was the fourth linebacker selected in the draft.

On June 23, 2010, the Cowboys signed Lee to a four-year, $3.49 million contract that included $1.71 million guaranteed and a signing bonus of $1.20 million. He was bothered by nagging injuries in training camp; consequently, he failed to see a lot of action on the field.

Lee earned NFL Defensive Player of the Week and Pepsi NFL Rookie of the Week honors for his week-14 performance versus Peyton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts, in which he recorded the first two interceptions of his NFL career, including one he returned for a touchdown and one in overtime to set up the game-winning field goal.

2011 season Promoted to starting inside linebacker in 2011, Lee thrived immediately in new defensive coordinator Rob Ryan's scheme. In the opening game versus the New York Jets, Lee intercepted Mark Sanchez to record the third interception of his career. His key interception of Rex Grossman and fumble recovery in the final minute of the Cowboys' Monday Night Football game versus the Washington Redskins were crucial in their 18-16 comeback.

By Week 3, Lee had a team-leading 36 tackles, two interceptions, two fumble recoveries, a tackle for a loss, and three pass breakups, After seven games, Lee led the team in total tackles with 51, 15 more than the next leading tackler, Gerald Sensabaugh. He also ranked first on the team with three interceptions, the only player on the team through the first seven games with more than one interception. In the eighth game of the season, Lee was inactive due to the wrist injury he had sustained the previous week.

2012 season Lee ended up having a breakout season, becoming one of the defensive leaders, leading the team with 131 tackles and tying for the team lead in interceptions (four) and tackles for loss (eight). He also became only the second linebacker ever to have intercepted both Tom Brady and Peyton Manning. During October, Lee led the Cowboys with 52 tackles (three for loss) and three interceptions. One of his interceptions against the Detroit Lions in week 8 included a career-high 74-yard return. His strong performances earned him NFC Defensive Player of the Month.

2014 season On May 27, Lee tore his ACL for the third time in his career after being blocked to the ground by rookie offensive lineman Zack Martin during an organized team activity (OTA). Some controversy arose about the injury because OTAs are supposed to be noncontact. On July 2, he was placed on the injured reserve list and was replaced by Rolando McClain.

2015 season After the emergence of Rolando McClain at middle linebacker the previous year, Lee was moved to weakside linebacker to protect him from direct hits by the offensive line and take advantage of his playmaking abilities. In the second game against the Philadelphia Eagles, he had 16 tackles (two for loss), two passes defensed, an interception in the end zone, and sealed the 20–10 win with an onside kick recovery, although he also suffered a concussion. His performance earned him NFC Defensive Player of the Week. On December 7 against the Washington Redskins, he posted 13 tackles, two tackles for loss, and one sack.

Lee finished with 128 tackles (led the team), 2.5 sacks, 11 tackles for loss (led the team), six quarterback pressures, one interception, and five passes defended. He appeared in 14 games, missing one contest because of a hamstring injury and the other because of a concussion. Lee was named to the Pro Bowl as an injury replacement for Kansas City Chiefs linebacker Justin Houston.

2016 season Lee helped lead the Cowboys defense to a 13-3 record in 2016. He was second only to Bobby Wagner in tackles and was named First-team All-Pro as a linebacker for the first time in his career. He was named to his second straight Pro Bowl as an injury replacement for Carolina Panthers linebacker Luke Kuechly.

Lee was ranked 79th on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2017.

2017 season Lee finished the 2017 season with 100 tackles.

2018 season Lee finished the 2018 season with 30 tackles and a 1/2 sack.

2019 season On February 13, 2019, Lee announced that he planned on returning for his ninth season. In week 15 against the Los Angeles Rams, Lee sacked Jared Goff once and intercepted a pass thrown by Goff during the 44–21 win. In week 16 against the Philadelphia Eagles, Lee recorded a team-high 17 tackles during the 17–9 loss.

2020 season On March 24, 2020, Lee resigned with the Cowboys on a one-year deal worth $4.5 million, with $2 million fully guaranteed. He was placed on injured reserve on September 7, 2020. On September 16, Lee was revealed to have undergone a sports hernia surgery, requiring at least six weeks to recover. He was activated on October 31 and finished the season with 20 tackles in nine games.

On April 26, 2021, Lee announced his retirement. At the time of his retirement, Lee was the last active Cowboy who had played under head coach Wade Phillips.

NFL career statistics Season Tackles Fumbles Interceptions Year Team GP GS Comb Solo Asst. Sack FF FR Yds TD Int Yds Avg Lng TD PD 2010 DAL 14 0 25 20 5 0.0 0 0 1 2 44 22.0 31 2 2011 DAL 15 15 103 69 34 0.0 0 0 0 87 21.8 37 0 2012 DAL 6 6 57 36 21 0.0 0 0 0 1 0 0.0 0 0 3 2013 DAL 11 11 99 68 31 0.0 0 1 6 2014 DALDid not play due to injury 2015 DAL 14 14 128 76 0 0 0 0 1 0 0.0 0 0 5 2016 DAL 15 15 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 1 2017 DAL 11 11 101 70 31 0 0 0 0 0 1 9 9.0 9 0 1 2018 DAL 7 5 30 15 15 0.5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 2019 DAL 16 13 86 55 31 1.0 0 0 0 0 1 25 25.0 25 0 4 2020 DAL 9 2 20 11 9 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0Career 118 92 802 521 281 4.0 2 4 10 0 14 339 24.2 74 2 30