Super Bowl XLVIII: Thoughts on Richard Sherman and the Actual Game Itself

Mandatory Credit: Steven Bisig-USA TODAY Sports

All of the Richard Sherman chatter has

died down

in the days since the Seattle Seahawks punched their ticket to the Super Bowl. By died down, I mean it’s rolling right along.

The third year defensive back has been the center of attention ever since he made the play of his career to this point against the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC Championship game on Jan. 19. The only way he can surpass what he had just accomplished is to make a play of equal or greater import in the Super Bowl, that’s it.

Immediately following the game he spoke with Fox’s Erin Andrews.

San Francisco fans have a right to be bothered by it since they were more invested in the whole thing. Their team just came up short in the conference title game. I get that. However, none of that warrants the knee-jerk overreaction that has inundated Sherman since the interview occurred.

He was presumptuously granted thug status.

Hank Aaron (others also) has also weighed in and offered Sherman his support. People assumed that he scared Erin Andrews to death.

Things got blown out of proportion and snowballed from there. Sherman was a little strong in the volume department but let’s focus on what he said instead of how he said it. He said he was the best corner in the game.

He said Michael Crabtree was sorry, mediocre at best. He’s been okay, not great.

Sherman was just talking trash. No need to act like we’ve never seen or heard that before. Muhammad Ali was the greatest at it. Michael Jordan always held his own and Larry Bird let you know as well.

Unbeknownst to most, Tom Brady even gets in on the act as well.

Imagine if the Patriots had advanced to the Super Bowl to face Sherman and the Seahawks. Tom would have been talking just as much as Richard.

Imagine something else too. Imagine if the script had been flipped and roles had been reversed. Imagine if the proverbial shoe had been on the other foot. Imagine if Michael Crabtree made that catch on the road over Sherman in the corner of the end zone and given San Francisco the 24-23 win. Isn’t it safe to say that he may have been a tad bit emotional during his post game interview too?

Of course he would have been. Check Crabtree out after his game winning catch to propel his Texas Tech Red Raiders over their rival Texas Longhorns.

It’s a similar situation with Sherman. The Seahawks and 49ers were playing for the third time this season with a Super Bowl berth on the line. It goes without saying the Sherman and Crabtree kept a steady dialogue going throughout the game.

The dislike between the teams is real and everyone got a little sample of that.

Now as for the actual game. I think Seattle will make Peyton Manning and the Denver offense earn everything they get. I don’t think they will be held down for the entire game. If Peyton puts a few scores on the board, will Russell Wilson be able to match him?

The weather will no doubt make its presence felt because it’s New York City in February. The weather will just be doing what it does for that time of year. Having the Super Bowl in New York will never make sense and is honestly another article for another day. When Dallas, a seemingly safe Super Bowl venue, can be hit with an ice storm days before the big game that tells you all you need to know.

Ultimately this will tip things into Marshawn Lynch’s favor and “Beast Mode” will be up for the challenge. It will be as good of a game as we can expect given the weather issues. Seattle will squeak out a victory for the NFC.

Seahawks 23 Broncos 20

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