Junior Seau Dead at 43: A Look at His Prestigious NFL Career

Hall of Fame bound and 12-time Pro Bowl Linebacker, Junior Seau was found dead Wednesday in his home after suffering a gunshot wound to the chest.

Due to the fact that there was a gun nearby, reports are speculating that Seau's death was most likely a suicide. The tragic news has sent the football world into shock.

Seau had a prolific career in college and the NFL. He was drafted fifth overall in the 1990 NFL draft out of the University of Southern California. Seau made an immediate impact in his rookie season, recording 85 tackles.

It wasn't long before Seau earned his first trip to the Pro Bowl. In his second year, he compiled 129 tackles and 7.0 sacks and was one of the youngest players on the Pro Bowl roster. Seau would remain a member of the Pro Bowl team for the next 12 seasons, all the way up until 2002. During that 12-year stretch, Seau only missed a total of eight games.

At the end of the 1999 NFL season, Seau was elected to the 1990 NFL All-Decade Team at his respected position. To go along with that prestigious accomplishment, Seau is ranked as the 53rd-best football player of all time by Pro-Football-Reference.com.

Dubbed the nickname "Tasmanian Devil" in his rookie season for the energy and ferocity he brought to the field, Seau is a player that the football world will miss, to say the least.

Seau was divorced in 2002, but leaves behind a daughter and two sons.