Richard Kevin Sherman (born March 30, 1988) is an American former professional football cornerback who played 11 seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Stanford Cardinal, beginning his career as a wide receiver before moving to cornerback as a junior. Sherman was selected by the Seattle Seahawks in the fifth round of the 2011 NFL draft. He was selected to the Pro Bowl five times and voted All-Pro five times, including three first-team selections. In 2013, Sherman led the NFL in interceptions. He is considered to be one of the greatest cornerbacks of all time.
During his time as a member of the Seahawks, Sherman was part of the "Legion of Boom" defense, the secondary that led the NFL in pass defense in 2013 and 2014. This unit helped the Seahawks win Super Bowl XLVIII; their 43–8 victory over the Denver Broncos matched the third-largest margin of victory in the history of the Super Bowl. The Seahawks made it to Super Bowl XLIX the following season, losing in a close game against the New England Patriots. During Sherman's time with the Seahawks, they led the league in scoring defense for four straight years between 2012 and 2015, making them the first team to do so since the 1950s Cleveland Browns. After playing with the Seahawks, Sherman played for the San Francisco 49ers for three seasons, where he made his third Super Bowl appearance in Super Bowl LIV, and then spent his final season with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
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Education
Sherman attended Dominguez High School in Compton, California, starring in football and track and field. As a senior in 2005, he accounted for 1,030 all-purpose yards, including 870 yards on 28 catches and three punt returns for touchdowns. Sherman also recorded 45 tackles, eight pass breakups and an interception as a cornerback, and helped Dominguez to a CIF Southern Section Division III title with a 41–14 victory over Sherman Oaks Notre Dame High School in the championship game.
As a member of the school's track team, Sherman was named a USA Today All-American after winning the California state title in the triple jump, with a mark of 15.44 meters, and was the seventh ranked triple jumper in California in 2005. He made it to the finals of the state meet in the 110-meter hurdles, placing third with a time of 13.99 seconds, and also finished sixth in the long jump, with a mark of 7.25 meters. Sherman was also timed at 10.77 seconds in the 100 meters.
Sherman graduated in 2006, when his classmates voted him the "Male student most likely to succeed". A scholar-athlete, Sherman was salutatorian (ranked second) in his high school class, graduating with a 4.2 GPA.
Sherman is a member of Phi Beta Sigma fraternity and graduated from Stanford University in 2010 with an undergraduate degree in communications. He began work towards his master's degree when he returned for a fifth year during his final year of eligibility.
Recruiting
College career
After originally committing to UCLA, Sherman received an athletic scholarship to attend Stanford University, where he played for the Stanford Cardinal football team from 2006 to 2010 under head coaches Walt Harris and Jim Harbaugh. Sherman began his career at Stanford as a wide receiver and led the Cardinal in receiving as a freshman in 2006 while being named an honorable mention to the Freshman All-American Team by Sporting News. In the 2006 season, he had 34 receptions for 581 yards and three touchdowns. Sherman caught 47 passes over the next two years before suffering a season-ending knee injury after playing in the first four games in 2008, which became a redshirt year. He was granted his request to switch to cornerback after his injury and made 112 tackles over his final two years, with six interceptions. Sherman was part of the 2010 Stanford Cardinal team that finished 12–1, a school record.
Professional career
Pre-draft
On January 29, 2011, Sherman played in the 2011 Senior Bowl and deflected two passes as part of Marvin Lewis' North team that lost 24–10 to the South. Sherman was added as a late replacement after Curtis Marsh Jr. sustained a hamstring injury on the first day of practice. His Senior Bowl performance was well received and was expected to raise his draft stock. Sherman attended the NFL Scouting Combine and completed all of the combine and positional drills.
On March 17, 2011, Sherman participated at Stanford's pro day and attempted to improve on his combine performance. He performed the 40-yard dash (4.53), 20-yard dash (2.56s), 10-yard dash (1.58s), vertical jump (37"), broad jump (11'0"), short shuttle (4.29s), and three-cone drill (6.72s). At the conclusion of the pre-draft process, Sherman was projected to be selected anywhere from the fourth to sixth rounds by the majority of NFL draft experts and scouts. The Sporting News projected him to be a second round pick and Fox Sports' Peter Schrager projected Sherman to be a fifth round pick. Sherman was ranked as the fourth best cornerback in the draft by The Sporting News, the 22nd best cornerback by USA Today, the 24th cornerback prospect by DraftScout.com, and the 30th best cornerback by Pro Football Weekly.
Seattle Seahawks
The Seattle Seahawks selected Sherman in the fifth round (154th overall) of the 2011 NFL draft. He was the 25th cornerback drafted in 2011. While watching the draft with his family at home, Sherman was "livid" about players he perceived as inferior getting drafted before him.
On July 22, 2011, the Seahawks signed Sherman to a four-year, $2.22 million contract that included a signing bonus of $182,424. Throughout training camp, he competed to be a starting cornerback against Walter Thurmond, Kelly Jennings, Byron Maxwell, Brandon Browner, and Kennard Cox. Head coach Pete Carroll named Sherman the fourth cornerback on the depth chart to begin the regular season, behind Marcus Trufant, Brandon Browner, and Walter Thurmond.
Sherman made his professional regular season debut in the season-opening 33–17 loss at the San Francisco 49ers. Three weeks later, Sherman made his first career solo tackle during a 13-yard punt return by wide receiver Eric Weems as the Seahawks narrowly lost 30–28 to the Atlanta Falcons. On October 30, 2011, Sherman earned his first career start after Marcus Trufant and Walter Thurmond were both placed on injured reserve for the remainder of the season. He finished the 34–12 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals with five combined tackles, a season-high three pass deflections, and made his first career interception. Sherman made his first career interception off a pass by quarterback Andy Dalton, that was originally intended for wide receiver A. J. Green, in the third quarter. In Week 12, Sherman collected a season-high seven combined tackles, a pass deflection, and intercepted a pass by Rex Grossman during a 23–17 loss to the Washington Redskins. On January 1, 2012, Sherman recorded a season-high six solo tackles, a pass deflection, and an interception in the 23–20 loss at the Arizona Cardinals in Week 17. Sherman intercepted a pass by Cardinals' quarterback John Skelton, that was initially intended for wide receiver Andre Roberts and returned it for a 33-yard gain in the fourth quarter.
Sherman finished his rookie year with 55 combined tackles (47 solo), 14 pass deflections, four interceptions, and a forced fumble in 16 games and 10 starts. Sherman was selected to the 2011 PFW All-Rookie Team and led all rookies with 17 pass deflections and four interceptions. Pro Football Focus gave him an overall grade of 85.2, which ranked 16th among all qualifying cornerbacks in 2011.
San Francisco 49ers
On March 10, 2018, just a day after being released by the Seahawks, Sherman agreed to a three-year, $39 million contract with the San Francisco 49ers.
Sherman made his 49ers debut during the season opener against the Minnesota Vikings, recording two tackles and a fumble recovery in the 24–16 loss. During Week 8 against the Arizona Cardinals, Sherman recorded a season-high seven tackles and sacked rookie quarterback Josh Rosen once in the 18–15 road loss.
During Week 16 against the Chicago Bears, Sherman was ejected from the game after throwing punches at Bears' wide receivers Josh Bellamy and Anthony Miller, who were also ejected. The incident was triggered after 49ers' safety Marcell Harris made a late hit on Bears' quarterback Mitchell Trubisky. On December 29, Sherman was fined $10,026.
Sherman finished his first season with the 49ers with 37 tackles, a sack, four passes defended, and a fumble recovery in 14 games played.
In Week 1 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Sherman intercepted a pass thrown by Jameis Winston and returned it 37 yards for a touchdown in the 31–17 win. This was Sherman's first interception and touchdown as a member of the 49ers. During Week 5 against the Cleveland Browns, Sherman recorded an interception off Baker Mayfield in the 31–3 victory. Three weeks later against the Carolina Panthers, Sherman recorded his third interception of the season off Kyle Allen in the 51–13 victory. On December 17, Sherman was selected to his fifth Pro Bowl, his first with the 49ers and first since 2016 with the Seahawks.
In the Divisional Round against the Minnesota Vikings, Sherman intercepted a pass thrown by Kirk Cousins and returned it for 13 yards during the 27–10 victory. During the NFC Championship Game against the Green Bay Packers, Sherman recorded two tackles and picked off Aaron Rodgers in the final two minutes of the game, which sealed a 37–20 victory and a trip to Super Bowl LIV. In the Super Bowl against the Kansas City Chiefs, Sherman's quest for a second Lombardi Trophy failed as the 49ers were defeated 31–20 in a game in which he was criticized for a poor performance during the Chiefs' game-winning drive, as he gave up a 38-yard reception to wide receiver Sammy Watkins and then missed an important goal-line tackle on running back Damien Williams, allowing him to score the touchdown that gave the Chiefs a 24–20 lead with under three minutes to play. Sherman was ranked 28th by his fellow players on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2020. He was named to the Pro Football Hall of Fame All-2010s Team.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
On September 29, 2021, Sherman signed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on a one-year deal worth $2.25 million.
In Week 7, against the Chicago Bears, Sherman served as the Defensive Backs Coach for the Buccaneers during the game and in practice that week due to Defensive Backs Coach Kevin Ross being ineligible due to COVID-19 protocols. During pregame warm-ups before the Week 10 game against the Washington Football Team, Sherman suffered a calf injury which caused him to miss the game and to be placed on injured reserve three days later. He was activated on December 10 in time for the team's Week 14 game against the Buffalo Bills, where Sherman recorded his only interception of the season off a pass thrown by Josh Allen in the Buccaneers' 33–27 overtime victory. He was placed back on injured reserve on January 11, 2022, with an Achilles injury, ending his season. Sherman finished the season playing in just five games with three starts, recording 11 tackles, a pass deflection, and an interception.
Career statistics
Post-NFL career
On June 14, 2022, it was announced that Sherman would become a pregame and postgame analyst for Amazon.
In addition to being a pregame and postgame analyst for Amazon, Sherman also co-hosts The Richard Sherman Podcast, alongside his former player agent and good friend, Mitchell Eisenstein. The podcast, which is currently under The Volume brand debuted on August 31, 2022. The podcast was originally under the Pro Football Focus label when it debuted, when it switched to The Volume brand on July 20, 2022.
Sherman appeared alongside former teammate Marshawn Lynch on the FOX show Stars on Mars, which aired on June 5, 2023.
In August 2023, it was reported that Sherman would be replacing Shannon Sharpe as Skip Bayless's co-host of the sports debate show Undisputed. Sherman made his debut on Undisputed on August 28, 2023. Sherman appeared only for one season due to Bayless' departure from Fox Sports on August 2, 2024.
On October 3, 2023, Sherman alongside former LOB teammate Kam Chancellor and business partner Leilani Wong opened a sports bar in Bellevue, Washington. The trio have been co-owners of the bar ever since.
Personal life
On February 5, 2015, four days after Super Bowl XLIX, Sherman's girlfriend gave birth to their first child, a son. Ashley Moss and Sherman were engaged in June 2015. They welcomed their second child, a daughter, on April 16, 2016. Sherman and Moss were married on March 28, 2018.
Sherman's outspoken personality, tendency for making big plays, and his frequent trash-talk made him one of the NFL's best-known players of his era. In January 2014, Sherman garnered national attention with a post-game interview made immediately after his tipped pass ensured the Seahawks a victory over the San Francisco 49ers in the 2013 NFC Championship game, in which he labeled himself the "best corner in the game" and called San Francisco wide receiver Michael Crabtree, to whom the decisive pass had been thrown, a "sorry" receiver. Sherman was featured on the cover of Madden NFL 15. He also actively writes for The Players' Tribune.
Sherman has his own charity called Blanket Coverage – The Richard Sherman Family Foundation. In 2013, Sherman started his charity to help children in low-income communities by providing them with school supplies and clothing. Sherman's foundation was formed to help children across the country achieve academic success.
Sherman is interested in cryptocurrency and tech stocks and is also an ambassador for the trivia app FleetWit. He is a co-owner of the Glacier Boyz for the Fan Controlled Football league. Their first game was on February 13, 2021.
Sherman owns homes in Yorba Linda, California and Maple Valley, Washington.
Legal issues
On July 14, 2021, Sherman was arrested in Redmond, Washington and initially booked on suspicion of burglary domestic violence, a felony charge which was later dropped. His charges were later updated to include five misdemeanors: second-degree criminal trespass and malicious mischief in the third degree, both with a domestic violence designation, as well as resisting arrest, driving while under the influence, and reckless endangerment of roadway workers. Sherman required stitches on his ankle as a result of the officer's deployment of a police dog to subdue him. Sherman was treated at a hospital prior to being taken to jail. He was booked into the King County Correctional Facility in Seattle shortly after 6:00 a.m. on July 14. Sherman was denied bail on the day of his arrest. The next day, the King County judge ordered Sherman released on his own recognizance. The NFL reportedly activated its emergency Domestic Violence protocols and opened an investigation into the matter to determine appropriate discipline for Sherman on July 14.
In a March 2022 plea bargain, Sherman pleaded guilty to first-degree negligent driving, second-degree criminal trespass, and speeding in a roadway construction zone. He was placed under court supervision for up to two years and ordered to pay $2,500 in court fees, but serve no additional jail time. Sherman was also ordered to pay restitution to his father-in-law, with the amount to be determined at a later date, and to the Department of Transportation. In addition, Sherman was ordered to undergo 16 hours of community service along with a DUI course.
On February 24, 2024, Sherman was arrested in Seattle for suspicion of DUI.