Richard Sherman Ripped On Twitter After All-Time Postgame Rant
SEATTLE (CBSNewYork/AP) — Richard Sherman didn't go into details about what happened, but somewhere during the offseason he felt slighted by San Francisco wide receiver Michael Crabtree.
It made his final play of Sunday's NFC championship game that much more special for Seattle's All-Pro cornerback. It was one of the few moments that San Francisco quarterback Colin Kaepernick decided to challenge Sherman, trying to find Crabtree on a throw to the end zone in the final minute.
And Sherman was up to the challenge, deflecting the pass into the air long enough for teammate Malcolm Smith to race over and intercept the pass to clinch Seattle's 23-17 win and the second Super Bowl trip in franchise history.
"I think everybody in the stadium was surprised," Sherman said. "You throw that, that's just a mistake."
Sherman stole the spotlight of the NFC title game between his athletic deflection, his taunting of Crabtree that followed and his television rant on the field after Russell Wilson took a knee to run off the final seconds.
While Smith was celebrating the interception, Sherman exchanged words with Crabtree, got shoved in the face as a rebuttal then made a choking gesture toward the San Francisco bench that he said was intended for Kaepernick.
Sherman ran over to Crabtree and gave him a pat on the backside, then appeared to extend his arm for a handshake. Instead, Sherman got shoved in the face before picking up his personal foul as his celebration continued.
Asked about the incident afterward by Fox reporter Erin Andrews, Sherman lit up Twitter with a rant that began: "I'm the best corner in the game. When you try me with a sorry receiver like Crabtree, that's the result you gonna get. Don't you ever talk about me!"
But it didn't seem anyone came away impressed. The reaction on Twitter -- from media members to former coaches to professional athletes across various leagues -- was largely negative. Some downright ripped Sherman for his rant.
http://twitter.com/JustinVerlander/statuses/425102194552369152
Oh no!!! Sherm's interview..
— Landry Fields (@landryfields) January 20, 2014
Sherman acting mad? Just prevented a game-winner to send his team to the Super Bowl and he's mad?
— Jane McManus (@janesports) January 20, 2014
Richard Sherman; great player, zero class.
— Frank Isola (@TheFrankIsola) January 20, 2014
Disappointing way to win in regards to Richard Sherman's interaction with Crabtree after the interception. #NotTooClassy
— Steve Weatherford (@Weatherford5) January 20, 2014
Richard Sherman made the play to win it. But show a little class Richard. Sets up a great Super Bowl. Offense vs Defense.
— Tony Dungy (@TonyDungy) January 20, 2014
Oh my Richard Sherman.... #sohumble #totalprofessional
— Jake ballard (@TheJakeBallard) January 20, 2014
Wait, what the hell was that?
— Chris Carlin (@ChrisCarlin) January 20, 2014
Wow. Decided to go with the broncos after that interview. Seriously dude??
— Matt Harvey (@MattHarvey33) January 20, 2014
Richard Sherman seems chill...
— Blake Griffin (@blakegriffin23) January 20, 2014
Real talk.....Sherman needs to calm down big time! All the self promoting is ridiculous
— Damien Woody (@damienwoody) January 20, 2014
Sherman is a baller but that was a terrible interview. Elementary school behavior.
— Kawika Mitchell (@KawikaMitchell) January 20, 2014
I'm not sure what the betting line is, but I know 99 percent of America is hoping Peyton Manning drops about 5 TD's on Richard Sherman.
— Steve Popper (@StevePopper) January 20, 2014
I thought @ErinAndrews handled herself well in a bizarre situation. BTW, "Poor Erin Andrews" now is trending nationally. Seriously.
— Neil Best (@sportswatch) January 20, 2014
http://twitter.com/KingCrab15/statuses/425120008218238976
Sherman didn't back down even after getting some time to collect his thoughts. He apologized to Andrews, then proceeded to call Crabtree "mediocre," making sure to enunciate each syllable of the word.
"I was making sure everybody knew Crabtree was a mediocre receiver," Sherman said. "And when you try the best corner in the game with a mediocre receiver that's what happens."
There was a lot of talk before the game.... Now I'm the bad guy lol.... Well if u judge my character on the field ....So many glass houses
— Richard Sherman (@RSherman_25) January 20, 2014
Sherman responded to his critics Monday morning in a first-person column for Sports Illustrated's The MMQB.
"It was loud, it was in the moment, and it was just a small part of the person I am," Sherman wrote. "I don't want to be a villain, because I'm not a villainous person."
It was a fiery, emotional rant from Sherman, who celebrated his first conference title by racing around the field after Wilson took the final knee, then leaping into the first row of seats in the south end zone to celebrate with fans.
"I know how passionate he is about the game of football. He said to me before the game it's going to come down to us making big plays. We've got to do it. Somehow we've got to find a way to make big plays," teammate Doug Baldwin said. "(Sherman) has been doing it all season. He is arguably the best cornerback in the NFL. They were trying to stay away from him the whole game. Eventually they were going to have to go his way and eventually they did and they made a mistake."
Sherman's play capped a fourth-quarter of big plays from Seattle's defense. The Seahawks forced three turnovers in the final quarter, including a sack and forced fumble by Cliff Avril that was recovered by Michael Bennett, and Kam Chancellor's interception of Kaepernick's pass with 7:37 left. While Seattle failed to capitalize on the fumble, they were able to turn Chancellor's interception into Steven Hauschka's field goal that gave Seattle a six-point lead with 3:37 left.
"That's the way we've played the whole season, man. These guys are relentless," Bennett said. "All we do is practice turnovers on defense and we just wanted to be in that situation, where the game was on our back because we were like, 'Hey, If we're going to win this game, then it's time to win it.'"
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