Getty Richard Sherman with Seahawks
Even if the Dallas Cowboys wielded enough salary cap space to add Richard Sherman — spoiler: they currently don’t — America’s Team just might not do it for the perennial Pro Bowl cornerback.
In remarks made to Bloomberg.com, Sherman intimated that he’s waiting for a contender to come calling after receiving scant interest, and even fewer offers, on the free-agent market this offseason.
“I want to get to a team that’s competing for a championship, so that’s what I’m focused on and waiting for a right opportunity,” Sherman said Friday. “When it comes, that’s where I’ll be.”
ESPN insiders Jeremy Fowler and Dan Graziano reported in March that Dallas was among three suitors for Sherman, a three-time first-team All-Pro and Super Bowl 48 champion. Fowler and Graziano connected the dots due to his familiarity with new Dallas defensive coordinator Dan Quinn, who coached Sherman in Seattle — the famed “Legion of Boom.”
The report also mentioned Las Vegas as a possible landing spot after Raiders head coach Jon Gruden essentially tampered in February by publicly selling the 2013 NFL interceptions leader on Sin City.
But the Cowboys never showed any intrigue, despite more media insistence. Gruden and the Raiders didn’t, either. Sherman’s stock was (and continues to be) ice-cold, save for a March 16 report that New Orleans had expressed surface-level interest.
Sherman’s latest comments suggest he won’t find a new home until NFL training camps open in late July and the preseason — as well as its accompanying injuries — ramps up throughout August.
And depending on which team does or does not reach out, Sherman faces the prospect of extending his free agency into the fall.
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McCarthy Lukewarm on Sherman
During a June 1 appearance on the Cris Collinsworth Podcast, Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy addressed the persistent Sherman speculation. While McCarthy didn’t entirely slam the door on the 33-year-old, he confirmed his acquisition is not at all imminent, citing salary cap constraints and impending “competition” at cornerback.
“Well, the one thing we talk about all the time, we’re always looking, we’re always looking to upgrade and to add,” he told Collinsworth. “There’s no question there, but also the salary cap, what’s in front of us, is something that we’re very focused on, too. I think that’s why you saw, I mean, the 11 draft picks was by design. To be able to select, you know, we had 10 going in, but to be able to have 11 selections this year was very important just in the big picture and the long-term planning for our roster development. So, we’re always looking, but I definitely love the competition that we have on the backend. It’ll be fun to see how this all sorts out.”
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Joseph Puts Pen to Paper
One of the aforementioned competitors at corner is second-round draft pick Kelvin Joseph, who inked his four-year rookie contract on Thursday, the team announced via Twitter.
CB Kelvin Joseph makes it official!
➡️https://t.co/h6Q2QghNVr
Joseph’s draft pedigree makes him a front-running candidate to win the CB2 job, working opposite 2020 second-rounder Trevon Diggs. “He can be an immediate starter,” a team source told Mike Fisher of CowboysSI.com.
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Follow Zack Kelberman on Twitter: @KelbermanNFL