Richard Sherman brings far more to the Buccaneers than just his playing abilities.
While some Buccaneers fans laughed at the notion that their team was adding an aging veteran corner like Richard Sherman to a secondary that needed consistency, it was more than fair to point out that those comments trivialized what Sherman brings to the table as a free agent.
Richard Sherman is one of the smartest players in NFL history. From the way he plays the game in a system that requires a lot of knowledge of the game to the way he represents himself on the business side of the game, few active players in the league can even come close to what Sherman knows.
The first few reps in a brand new system and without time to get into game shape proved difficult at times for Sherman, yet he was still able to bring some consistency to a unit that desperately needed it. Unfortunately, Sherman went down with an injury like the rest of the Buccaneer starting corners, but that doesn’t stifle his ability to support this roster.
In a surprise turn of events explained by Peter Schrager, Richard Sherman will put on his coaching hat today rather than a helmet to step in for defensive backs coach Kevin Ross, who is out due to COVID-19 protocols.
The idea of a player-coach in the modern NFL is unheard of, specifically due to salary cap concerns, but that is mostly because teams could game the system by hiring players to be “coaches,” thus circumventing the cap.
Richard Sherman is still on the books for the Buccaneers, and there are no rules in place that will keep him from being at the stadium and being able to lend his wealth of defensive knowledge to Todd Bowles.
This is an unprecedented move by the Bucs in the current era, and it is more than fitting that Sherman gets the honor of being in this highly exclusive club that is mainly made up of personnel a century ago in professional football.
Who knows, depending on how today goes, Sherman may start to gain a lot more buzz as a coach in his future. If there was any player who could step up to this task with their understanding of the game, it’s Richard Sherman.
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