He may not be the most celebrated player on the gridiron but his contributions to the Seattle Seahawks have certainly helped them attain tremendous success over the years since he was drafted. Richard Sherman is a 2011 NFL Draft that was signed by the Seattle Seahawks. He has held the record for most interceptions and defended passes since he made his league debut with the Seahawks.
Having played as both a wide receiver and subsequently a cornerback, Richard has been named to Pro Bowl on four occasions and has been voted All-Pro the same number of times. His dedication and commitment helped the Seahawks to their first-ever Super Bowl title in 2013.
Richard Sherman’s early days and career
Sherman was born and raised Richard Kevin Sherman on March 30, 1988, in Compton, California. At his high school, Dominguez High School, he showed signs of talent that promised success in an athletic career, whichever route he would take. He played and participated in track and field events with football as well. For his track and field endeavors, he was named an All-American by USA Today for winning the state title in the triple jump event with a jump of 15.44 meters.
In his senior year, he helped his school’s football team to a CIF Southern Section title in the third division. He graduated in 2006 as his class’s salutatorian with a 4.2 GPA, having been voted as the “Male Student Most Likely To Succeed”.
Next Sherman got an athletic scholarship to study communications at Stanford University. Here he played as a wide receiver for the school’s football team. In his first year, he was named a Freshman All-American, with 34 receptions, 581 receiving yards, and 3 receiving touchdowns. However, he suffered a serious knee injury that put an end to his season in early 2008. This earned him a redshirt year, one that he came back to Stanford to complete in his postgraduate studies. Post-injury, Richard was granted his request to switch to the cornerback position. There he made 112 tackles over the course of the two years he had left.
In 2011, Richard Sherman was drafted by the Seattle Seahawks in the fifth round of the NFL Draft. In his rookie season, he started only 10 games but he did enough in those games to prove his immense talent, with 17 defended passes, 4 interceptions, and 55 tackles. Unsurprisingly, he was named to the 2011 PFW All-Rookie Team.
In the 2012 season, Sherman’s Seahawks memorably beat the Arizona Cardinals 58-0, making it the biggest ever shutout in the club’s history. At the end of the season, Richard had garnered a host of tackles, and interceptions but was snubbed for the 2012 Pro Bowl. He was, however, named to the more selective Associated Press NFL All-Pro First Team.
The next season was one that will live forever in the hearts of Sherman and his teammates. They played good, aggressive football and the best pass defense in the league, earning them the name “Legion of Boom”. Sherman’s Seattle Seahawks went on to win their first-ever Super Bowl. Richard also maintained his spot on the Associated Press NFL All-Pro First Team while also being called up to the 2014 Pro Bowl, thanks to his league-leading eight interceptions.
The 2014 season was a good one for Richard Sherman both on and off the field. He became one of the NFL’s highest-paid defensive players with a new four-year $57.4 million contract. He was also nominated for an ESPY award in the Best Breakthrough Athlete category. On June 16, he was revealed as the official cover athlete for the football sports video game Madden 15. The team fought their way again to the Super Bowl but couldn’t retain their title, losing 28-24 to the New England Patriots. Sherman ended the season with 57 tackles, 4 interceptions and 8 passes defended.
The 2015 season saw him end with 14 passes defended, 50 tackles, and 2 interceptions. He was named to the Pro Bowl for the third season in a row. He also came in on the 20th position on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2016. Richard would rank 21st on the list the following season. He also retained his Pro Bowl position for a fourth straight time in the 2016 season. The season ended on a sour note for Sherman as he suffered a sprained MCL injury that he carried into the 2017 season.
He was eventually ruled out for the rest of the 2017 season after rupturing his Achilles in the Seahawks’ Week 10 game against the Arizona Cardinals.
On March 7, 2018, it was rumored that the star cornerback would be leaving the Seahawks. The rumors came true two days later as Sherman left to join the San Francisco 49ers in a three-year deal worth $39 million.
Richard Sherman’s family: Wife, Girlfriend, Kids
No one really knows how long Richard was in a relationship with his partner Ashley Moss. However, on February 5, 2015, four days after the Super Bowl, the couple welcomed their first child, a son whom they named Rayden. Almost four months later, in June of the same year, Sherman popped the question. The couple got married on March 28, 2018, having already welcomed a second child, a daughter, Avery, two years prior on April 16, 2016.
Height, weight, and quick facts about him
The San Francisco 49ers cornerback stands at an intimidating height of 6 feet 3 inches, which translates to 1.91 meters. And for the reason of his profession, he also maintains a nearly perfect body weight of 88 kg (195 lbs).
1. A trash talker
Besides his obvious talent, Richards way with words and penchant for verbal outbursts have aided his prominence within the sport. In March 2013, he famously tore into sports columnist Skip Bayless on the talk show ESPN First Take. He called him an ignorant and egotistical cretin.
During the 2014 NFL playoffs against the 49ers, Sherman beautifully intercepted a pass from quarterback Colin Kaepernick, effectively winning his team the game. He went on to show insulting gestures towards Kaepernick and his teammate Crabtree. He was fined $7,875 for his antics by the NFL.
2. Richard Sherman owns a charity organization
Owing to his own academic successes, Richard launched a charity in 2013. The objective was to cater to kids in low-income communities to help them pursue academic excellence by providing them with clothing and school supplies. The charity is called Blanket Coverage – The Richard Sherman Family Foundation.
3. He is an investor in technological advancements
The player is obviously interested in the future of tech, and of course, securing his finances before he retires. Richard invests in tech stocks and cryptocurrency. He is also an ambassador for FleetWip, a trivia app.
