Let’s get the facts straight. Fact is Richard Sherman is confident. Fact is Richard Sherman is arrogant and pompous. Fact is Richard Sherman is considered the best cornerback in the National Football League.
He is a part of the best secondary in the League, on the best defense in the League.
Sherman’s recent antics, however, have nothing to do with not being grateful for his place in society.
The shenanigans have nothing to do with being black or white and absolutely nothing to do with the culture in which he was raised.
While commendable, Sherman’s behavior has nothing to do with his community service efforts and nothing to do with going to Stanford.
This is a simple case of a person in the spotlight being who he is while caring less about what the world has to say. Richard Sherman is loud and boisterous because Richard Sherman was born to be loud and boisterous. That’s his personality. It’s who he is.
The interesting aspect of having no regard for others opinions is that it is a necessary quality in the psyche of a cornerback’s ability to perform and move onto the next game or next play.
Whether it’s a first down or a touchdown; it’s a lonely feeling watching your defensive comrades slowly jogging towards you after giving up a catch.
Listening too closely to the opinion of others will slowly eat away at a cornerback’s confidence. Performance, will in turn, suffer and an early release date will be inevitable.
With this in mind, it should come as no surprise as to why Richard Sherman is where he is in his craft.
Sherman is physically gifted with all the qualities necessary for a dominant NFL corner. Sherman uses these qualities and spikes it with supreme intelligence, awareness and instinct for the game.
When the whistle blows, the fuse is lit and it’s time to perform, drawing on motivation from within.
Richard Sherman just so happens to use his ‘gift of gab’ to keep his tank full of high octane for the entire sixty minutes. Too each is own.
There are cities across America that resemble Compton, California where times are hard and violence is a weekly occurrence.
Sherman is a product of Compton, and there is no doubt that many different dynamics have shaped Sherman into the success story that he has become and into the man he is today.
It has become trendy, easy and cool to blame behavior on environment.
While in training camp with the Buffalo Bills, I had the opportunity to spend time around another Compton, California native, Marcellus Wiley.
I did not get to know Wiley well; however, what I do remember is this 6’4″ 276 pound man running around, attempting to catch punts before practice while yelling the SportsCenter “da-da-da, da-da-da” jingle.
Wiley even took it upon himself to nurture the Bills’ 2000 1st round draft pick, Defensive End Erik Flowers.
Despite an obvious conflict of interest, Wiley worked with Flowers, attempting to pass along some of the wisdom and knowledge that made Wiley a 2001 AFC Pro Bowl selection.
However, while being hospitable to Flowers, Wiley was quick to remind others, leaving no doubt, that the incumbent was going to be in place for the next few terms.
While both Sherman and Wiley hail from Compton, they have two very distinct personalities.
They are two uniquely different people who,given the same set of circumstances as Sherman’s, would have probably handled the media differently.
In the heat of the moment, against a rival or not, our actions are predicated on one of two things.
We either portray a reflection of who we truly are, OR we provide a reflection of who we want others to think we are.
Some people are introverts who keep to themselves and live in their bubble.
Richard Sherman’s behavior is that of an extrovert who relishes the spotlight and feeds off the attention of others.
It was assumed in many circles that upbringing was also to blame for Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver Riley Cooper’s well publicized racially motivated rant this past summer.
The Cooper story makes this Richard Sherman situation read like a Dr. Suess book, however the correlation is simple.
You never know what goes on behind others’ closed doors. If one possesses celebrity or not, who we truly are as people rarely makes it to the public eye.
In life, there are circumstances that can quickly lead to a verbal or physical confrontation that on-lookers, not knowing of these details, will view as over-the-top, or excessive.
Sherman’s camp claims after an off-season charity event, Sherman approached San Francisco 49ers wide receiver, Michael Crabtree, in a peaceful manner attempting to make small talk.
Crabtree’s reaction allegedly led to the two having to be separated.
Whether true or false, in my mind, this off-season altercation is the fuel behind Sherman’s on-field sarcastic butt slap and attempted handshake.
Not being from Compton.
We have all been in professional settings, meetings or events where we had to control our behavior.
If sideline reporter, Sal Palantonio came to your place of business, stepped in and was looking for a comment, even if days after the occurrence, the reaction Palantonio would receive would run the gamut.
Some will remain reserved while others will be just as animated and colorful as Richard Sherman was.
Society has become accustomed to expecting and anticipating a specific, ‘cookie cutter’, type of response.
Any variation from the societal norm, anything different than what society has been trained to believe it should be or look like, is met with public outrage, venom and in the Richard Sherman case, bigotry.
Football has provided Richard Sherman with life experiences that many, no matter if from Compton or from Beverly Hills, will never have.
A little kid’s game has provided a lifestyle for Sherman that echo what dreams are made of.
We all have dreams, goals and aspirations. For many of us, dreams become distant memories as they take a backseat to adult responsibility.
As children we are told we can be whatever we want to be. Along our journey to that place, some experiences are good and some are not so good.
We taste disappointment but most importantly we grow. While growing, we develop our personality which makes us unique.
After Sherman’s post game tirade, an on-air personality raised the question: Does Richard Sherman have deeper rooted issues that have accumulated during his life that are displayed through his demeanor, words and actions?
My response: Don’t we all?