Uncle Sherm
Thus far former 49ers nemesis Richard Sherman has proved to be everything his new teammates didn’t expect. Even as he mends his Achilles, his effect on a young defense and team has been immeasurable.
The name Richard Sherman stirs emotions in NFL circles simply by reputation alone. So when his new 49ers teammates actually got to meet the man, the pleasantly surprised expressions have yet to abate.
Not long after the 49ers signed Richard Sherman as a free agent, the cornerback also landed a moonlighting gig as a travel writer.
The booking app HotelTonight put up Sherman and his wife, Ashley Moss, in various swanky San Francisco accommodations and asked him to write online reviews. The three-time first-team All-Pro, while using an impossibly clever username (“Richard S.”), clearly savored his new Bay Area landscape.
Of the Fairmont Hotel, Sherman wrote: “The first thing we did was throw on those plush robes and order champagne (it came in under 30 min) so we could sit on the balcony and take in the insane views of the bay.”
Of the Proper Hotel: “The decor is super fun and the rooftop bar has a cool scene. Definitely a hip/ hipster vibe in an up-and-coming neighborhood.”
Of the Hotel Zeppelin: “Since the hotel is in Union Square, this was a good spot to explore the iconic tourist spots or shop. The rooms are a bit small for a football player but it’s a cool hotel.”
Sherman never got around to reviewing the Super 8, but he can share insights about the Super Bowl (he’s won one, lost one). The Four Seasons? This will be his eighth. As for the Holiday Inn, the former Seattle Seahawks once spent a traveling holiday eating Thanksgiving dinner at the 50yard line of Levi’s Stadium.
As it turns out, his football job and his travel job have much in common. Because Sherman, 30, had lots of down time during training camp as he eased his way back from a career-threatening ruptured Achilles, he served as a football tour guide for the 49ers young defensive backs.
Sherman also shared inside tips with receivers, quarterbacks, and anyone else willing to listen. Sherman took so many players under his guidance so quickly that around camp, Richard S. became known as “Uncle Sherm.”
He’s been funny at his news conferences, too, cutting off a reporter who asked Sherman how an old guy like him might be able to help the young guys.
“Old? Why you gotta put it like that?” Sherman said. “It’s veteran.”
His low-key charm surprised many of the 49ers, especially considering Sherman’s earned reputation as a pain in the neck. But he proved to be an astonish-
ingly gracious host — the maitre d’ of the defense.
“When he’s lined up against you in a different jersey, he does seem loud and brash and you start thinking, ‘I can’t wait to shut this guy up,’’’ 49ers fullback Kyle Juszczyk said. “It’s absolutely not the case when he’s on your team. I think he’s incredibly intelligent. He’s very genuine. He does a great job of bringing other people along.”
Left tackle Joe Staley, who knew Sherman only from their ferocious battles with Seattle for NFC West supremacy, said: “I thought he was going to be annoying, like he was annoying to me when he was in a Seahawks uniform. But he’s been nothing but great. We’re happy to have him in the red and gold.”
AMONG THE ELITE
Ultimately, the 49ers, and Sherman himself, want him to get back to annoying the daylights out of opposing receivers. His career is at a crossroads, but at last check he still ranked among the NFL’s elite defensive backs. Over the nine games he played last season, the catch rate allowed against him was 46.3 percent, which ranked fourth in the league according to Pro Football Focus. That’s in line with his career mark of 47.7 percent since entering the league in 2011, the best in the NFL during that span.
“With Sherm, you can tell he knows exactly what he’s doing and why he’s been the best corner in the league forever,’’ rookie receiver Dante Pettis said after lining up a few times against him in practice.” (Going against him) was exciting. You get to watch
this dude destroy wide receivers for a few years then you get to go against him everyday in practice.”
In an increasingly wide-open passing league, Sherman hasn’t allowed 100 yards in coverage since Week 4 of 2012, according to Pro Football Focus. That was 88 games ago. So when asked about his goals for this season, he did not exactly lower the bar.
“When I go out there, I expect to dominate. I expect to perform at a high level,’’ Sherman said. “I expect to make my stops, to play my technique, to be where I’m supposed to be when I’m supposed to be there. Outside of that, I expect to be a great teammate and to encourage my young guys when I’m not practicing.”
NON-COMBUSTIBLE?
For a player who spent much of his career being mad at somebody for something, he’s been remarkably chill around the Santa Clara facility. In previous years, Sherman’s had dustups with Tom Brady (“You mad bro?”), Michael Crabtree (“A sorry receiver”), his one-time Stanford coach Jim Harbaugh (“I don’t deal with him”) and former Washington receiver, and new 49ers teammate, Pierre Garcon (“Pierre doesn’t matter in this league,’’ he said in 2014).
Sherman even tussled with his old employers on his way out of Seattle. After signing a three-year deal with the 49ers worth $27.15 million, according to Pro Football Talk, the corner scolded Seahawks fans on Twitter: “Instead of getting upset with me for going to a new team, how about you get upset with the people who forced me to go? If one job fires you and another job offers you a great position, I highly doubt most people would go back to the old job for a lot less money.”
Garrett Celek, the 49ers tight end, wondered how such a combustible personality was going to mesh with what has become a tight-knit group.
“When I found out we first signed him, it was like, ‘Oh, that’s going to be kind of weird in the locker room,’’’ Celek said. “But he gelled with us right away and has become one of the leaders of the team. He mixed it up with everybody right off the bat. No one had any problem with him.”
About the only thing that doesn’t tick Sherman off, though, is the injury that leaves his future in doubt. During a Week 10 game with the Arizona Cardinals last season, the cornerback got tangled up with receiver John Brown late in the third quarter of a 22-16 win.
He grasped his ankle immediately, already knowing the worst, but Sherman made a point of getting up and limping to the sideline. That’s how his career in Seattle ended.
You mad, bro?
Hardly.
“It was a great time for everything to happen,’’ Sherman said early in camp. “It was one of those things where I felt like it needed to happen and it helped me, at this point in my career, to take another step and find another level.”
Sherman said the injury allowed him to spend time at home with his two young kids, Rayden, 3, and Avery, 2. He turned his rehab into a family bonding experience. Avery brought him ice and rubbed his legs. Rayden marveled once his dad started running again. “My son says, ‘Daddy, you look so fast!’ ’’ Sherman said.
A NEW START
Devastating as the injury was, Sherman said it offered the cleansing effect of a new start. He began his career as an underestimated defender, the 154th player taken overall in 2011. Sherman made a career out of proving people wrong and heads into this season as the active leader with 32 interceptions, comfortably ahead of the Raiders’ Reggie Nelson (23) and Eric Weddle of the Baltimore Ravens (23).
He is also the active leader in passes defensed with 99, just ahead of 92 each by Brent Grimes
of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Johnathan Joseph of the Houston Texans. It’s a syndrome his new neighbors, the Warriors, might understand: Greatness got monotonous.
“I’m not saying people get complacent, but you get bored. It’s a routine,’’ Sherman said. “You go out there, you play 16 games, you play at a high level, you do your best, you go against these guys and you enjoy it. But sometimes throwing a wrench in the plans helps you. It wakes you up. It reignites your fire. It takes you back to where you need to be, and I think that’s what I needed and that’s what I appreciated.”
So the day after Sherman’s injury, he embarked on a new mission. He called his friend, Lakers star Kobe Bryant, who came back from an Achilles tear at age 34. Bryant gave him more than a mere pep talk, instead laying out a detailed and urgent itinerary for Sherman to get going right away.
“He gave me some things to do early on in the process to make sure that I expedited the healing process,’’ the cornerback said. “I was more proactive than reactive. I think that was one the big things. If you just sit there and just let your foot sit in the cast and let your muscles atrophy, you’re going to have a longer road to recovery.”
Against the odds, Sherman was on the field for the start of training camp in late July. But the comeback was hardly complete. In his first padded 1-on-1 drill since the injury, receiver Marquise Goodwin treated the shutdown corner like a turnstile, blasting pass him for long gain. A few days later, Sherman required a week of rest because of a hamstring strain.
Still, he continued to make his presence felt. On the practice field, you could see him giving instruction to players and talking through good plays and bad. If Sherman had had a whistle and a clipboard, he would have looked just like a defensive coordinator. He even sounded the part when asked about cornerback Ahkello Witherspoon.
“Ahkello’s been great. He’s incredibly receptive and a bright young man,’’ Sherman said. “He’s very coachable. If you tell him to do something once, he’s going to grasp it and be able to master it or do everything he can to master it in the next couple of days.”
Sherman is even getting along with his old sparring partner now that he and Garcon are teammates. Back in that memorable tussle, on Oct. 7, 2014, a frustrated Garcon tried to throw Sherman to the ground by the facemask. Another time, Garcon tried to yank him down by the hair.
Now, they are BFFS (Best Forty-Niners Forever) and even had lockers next to each other during training camp. The receiver now calls Sherman “a good guy.”
“In the locker room,’’ Garcon said, “we’re all friends.”
Sherman has also had in-depth conversations with Jimmy Garoppolo as the quarterback prepares for his first full season as the starter. They talk about different routes and coverages, with Sherman telling the QB what to be on alert for from a defensive perspective. (“We talked about different passes, people he likes to take on dates …” Sherman quipped.)
A MENTOR
Most tellingly, he’s also made a point of mentoring wayward linebacker Reuben Foster. The only thing standing between the second-year player and stardom is his early penchant for trouble. The 49ers will start the season without Foster, suspending him without pay for the first two games of the regular season for violating the NFL’s Conduct and Substances of Abuse policies.
Sherman’s locker was right next to Foster’s in training camp.
“I’ve had many conversations with him,’’ Sherman said. “I think he’s going to have a great year. Obviously, there have been some mistakes. There have been some ups and downs of this offseason and last year. But he’s a human being, and human beings make mistakes.
“I think Reuben is moving forward and trying to be a better man. Sometimes you don’t know what you don’t know. And as you know better, you do better. I think that’s going to be the case with him.”
In all, Sherman’s been just the kind of veteran a team needs as they start knocking on the door to relevancy. The 49ers finished 6-10 last season and ranked 24th in total defense. Only five teams had fewer than the 49ers’ 10 interceptions.
Now, along comes Sherman, who in Seattle was the leader of the NFL’s most consistently dominant defense and appears intent on whipping the 49ers secondary into the same kind of shape.
“I’ve seen a lot of growth with that group. With Richard Sherman it’s more than what he brings to the table. It’s what he means to these other guys,’’ Juszczyk said. “I’ve seen them look to him for so much. They’re always working on extra things and it’s showing up on the field now. Guys are making plays. There’s a lot of confidence there.”
So Sherman enters 2018 with a new team, new challenges and new skeptics. Presumably, there will be new feuds, too. (The 49ers face the Seahawks in Seattle on Dec. 2 and at Levi’s Stadium on Dec. 16).
Sherman vows to be ready. And if his Achilles recovers enough to let him thrive at left cornerback again, he might want to warn receivers with a sign from one those fancy San Francisco hotels.
Do Not Disturb.