Sebastian Vollmer Sebastian Georg Vollmer ( ; born July 10 , 1984 ) is an American football offensive tackle who is currently a free agent . He was drafted by the New England Patriots in the second round of the 2009 NFL Draft . He played college football at Houston . He is one of two German players in the NFL ( the other is the New York Giants ' Markus Kuhn ) . Early years . Born in Düsseldorf , Germany , Vollmer did not start playing American football until he was 14 years old . He attended Quirinus Gymnasium , a secondary school in Neuss , Germany . He played American football for the Düsseldorf Panther s and helped his team to a 25 - 0 record and two national Junior Bowl wins . After appearing in the 2004 Global Junior Championships in San Diego , California , he was recruited by college coaches as a 250 - pound tight end . College career . Vollmer was recruited to play college football by several schools , but chose to attend the University of Houston beginning in 2004 . When Vollmer first arrived at Houston , he was a tight end who barely spoke English . He redshirted his freshman season in 2004 , and appeared in eight games as a reserve tight end in 2005 . After requiring back surgery as a sophomore , Vollmer switched to left tackle , where he started 25 straight games for Houston . At Houston , Vollmer ' s offensive line coach was Joe Gilbert , who had previously worked at the University of Toledo , where he coached another Patriots lineman , Nick Kaczur . As a senior , he was named to the first - team All - Conference USA at left tackle . Professional career . Pre - draft . Vollmer was not invited to the NFL Combine , but did have a private workout with Patriots offensive line coach Dante Scarnecchia prior to the 2009 NFL Draft . New England Patriots . 2009 season . Vollmer was drafted by the New England Patriots in the second round ( 58th overall ) of the 2009 NFL Draft . On July 17 , he signed a four - year contract . Vollmer made his official NFL debut in the Patriots ' first game of the season . He made his first start at left tackle , filling in for an injured Matt Light , in the Patriots ' record - setting 59 – 0 victory in Week 6 against the Tennessee Titans , and started the next four games . After being sidelined for two weeks with a head injury , Vollmer made his sixth start of the season in Week 14 against the Carolina Panthers ; Vollmer lined up at both left tackle and right tackle , in place of veteran tackle Nick Kaczur , during the game . Vollmer started the Patriots ' next two games after Kaczur was injured , and when Kaczur returned in Week 17 , he continued to start at right tackle , including the Patriots ' playoff loss to the Baltimore Ravens . 2010 season . In 2010 , Vollmer started all 16 games of the regular season at right tackle for the Patriots . He performed well throughout the season and was named to the Associated Press 2010 All - Pro Team ( 2nd team , thus one of the four best tackles — left or right — in the NFL ) , but was not voted to the 2011 Pro Bowl , as “ Vollmer ' s anonymity kept him out of the Pro Bowl ” . 2011 season . Vollmer injured his back in a preseason game and missed the beginning of the 2011 season . He returned in week 2 and rotated with Nate Solder at RT but was injured again in the win over the San Diego Chargers . Vollmer returned in week 8 vs the Pittsburgh Steelers , rotating again with Solder . 2012 season . Vollmer played and started in 15 out of the 16 regular season games . Vollmer is set to become a free agent after the season .