Seattle Seahawks CB Richard Sherman can be described by many words, but “quiet” isn’t one of them. National media outlets have conflated his recent outspokenness, attempting to depict him as the NFL’s latest villain. On the contrary, Sherman’s remarks aren’t damaging to warrant even a trace of true football infamy.
Sherman is just one of many highly skilled athletes to loudly profess his talents to the world. In fact, in comparison to his predecessors, Sherman’s words are relatively tame. Recall Chad “Ochocinco” Johnson, a wide receiver for the Bengals, Patriots, and most recently, the Dolphins. Johnson is famous for his wild antics both on an off the field. During the 2007 season opener he wore a replica Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee jacket with “H.O.F 20??” printed across the back. Let’s not forget Terrell Owens, a receiver who played the majority of his career for the 49ers, the Eagles, and the Cowboys. In 2006 T.O. launched into a locker room rant accusing his team of not targeting him in a 38-24 loss to Philadelphia. T.O.’s most notorious acts were his trademark touchdown celebrations, which at one point even included props. Both Johnson and Owens’ frequent negative commentary on national radio and television concerning their employers resulted in multiple game suspensions and fines.
Like these players, Sherman is unafraid to boast about his football prowess. However, most of his unsportsmanlike conduct (such as slapping Jim Harbaugh’s butt) is not premeditated, but rather a spontaneous combustion of circumstance and emotion. Johnson once complained in a radio interview that both the Bengals and the media unjustly “labeled [him] selfish and a cancer.” Similarly, Sherman has been described as a distraction, despite Pete Carroll’s assurance that he is not. As a result, Sherman is condensed, packaged, and sold to consumers as a brazen “thug” who worships the sound of his own voice.
Simply put, the press loves to hate Sherman just as much as he loves himself. He knows that he is a Compton-born, Stanford-educated, interception-leading corner and he is proud of it. Although Sherman might play with a chip on his shoulder, he also plays smart, something that Johnson and Owens never seemed to prioritize. His energy, which briefly materializes in the form of taunting and uncensored post-game interviews, dissolves into intense focus the minute he steps off the field.
Throughout the 2005 season, Johnson kept a list he titled “Who Covered 85 in ’05,” a catalog of his opponents’ best corners, complete with a yes-no checkbox indicating if they were able to cover him. In many ways Sherman’s post-NFC Championship outburst was the same, checking Michael Crabtree off a mental list of “sorry receiver[s].” Sherman’s biggest checkbox will be decided this Sunday in New Jersey. In the meantime, the world shall await another flash of Sherman’s competitiveness, while the media continues to characterize him as the Legion of Boom’s notorious leader.
