Getty Richard Sherman #25 of the San Francisco 49ers.
The Dallas Cowboys are among three teams interested in signing San Francisco 49ers cornerback Richard Sherman when NFL free agency opens next week, ESPN reported.
Insider reporters Jeremy Fowler and Dan Graziano consider Dallas a legitimate suitor due to Sherman’s familiarity with defensive coordinator Dan Quinn, who ran Seattle’s defense during the famed “Legion of Boom” era, of which Sherman was a staple.
Fowler and Graziano also named the New York Jets and Las Vegas Raiders as potential landing spots for the five-time Pro Bowler. The latter is an easy dot to connect after Raiders head coach Jon Gruden — tampering be damned — publicly pitched Sherman on Sin City.
“Richard Sherman, if you are a free agent, which there is a rumor you are, we are looking for an alpha presence in our secondary,” Gruden said in an interview last month. “Somebody that could play this Hawk 3-press technique with the read step. If you’re available and interested, maybe you and I can get together at some point off-air.”
Spotrac.com projects Sherman’s market value at $19.989 million over two years, making him the league’s 18th-highest-paid CB with an annual salary of $9.9 million.
Unrestricted free agents are permitted to agree in principle to contracts with outside teams beginning Monday, the opening of the legal tampering window and 48-hour prelude to Wednesday’s official start of the new league year.
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Background on Sherman
The former fifth-round pick out of Stanford will go down as one of the best corners of this generation. A three-time All-Pro and member of the NFL’s 2010s All-Decade team, Sherman’s totaled 484 tackles, 115 pass breakups, and 36 interceptions across 10 seasons, split between the Seahawks (2011-17) and 49ers (2018-2020). His best season came in 2014 when he captured NFC Defensive Player of the Year honors.
As mentioned, the 31-year-old (on March 30) was a linchpin of Seattle’s formerly historic secondary that helped the franchise to a resounding victory over the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl 48. He joined the Niners in 2018, negotiating a three-year, $39 million contract.
Sherman — who suffered a devastating Achilles’ rupture in 2017 — maintained his high level of play up until 2020, as injuries limited him to just five games, one INT, and one PBU, (in)advertently expediting his departure from the Bay Area.
“It’s been made pretty clear,” he said last month, referring to his impending divorce from the 49ers, per The San Francisco Bee’s Chris Biderman. “It was a good conversation, nothing crazy. Just a good conversation about where they are and where I am, and their plans. We were both very positive and as good as you can be in a situation like this.”
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Cowboys Pushing to Land Future Hall-of-Fame CB in Free Agency: Report