How key advice from Hall of Famers helped Richard Sherman become elite

There were plenty of questions surrounding the arrival of Richard Sherman to the 49ers prior to the 2018 season.

Yet the future Hall of Famer answered just about all of them with aplomb.

That’s because Sherman is the best cornerback on the NFL’s best passing defense and a central figure in San Francisco’s Super Bowl designs ahead of Saturday’s playoff game against the Minnesota Vikings.

The 49ers this season allowed 169 net yards per game through the air, the fewest since the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2008, and the fifth-fewest since 2006.

Sherman’s numbers are best in the NFL

Despite turning 31 in March and coming off a Achilles tear in 2017, Sherman led the all cornerbacks in yards per coverage snap at 0.44, according to scouting service Pro Football Focus.

The metric is a broad measurement of cornerback efficiency, while his 46.8 passer rating when targeted (third at his position) indicates quarterbacks would be wise to go elsewhere. That’s a product of Sherman recording more interceptions (3) than touchdowns allowed (1), which he’s done in six of his nine NFL seasons. Last week he was named a second-team All-Pro after being voted to his fifth Pro Bowl last month.

Asked what makes Sherman such an effective cornerback at his age, Vikings head coach and long-time defensive play caller Mike Zimmer didn’t need more than two sentences to answer.

“Well he’s a great competitor and he’s very tough — and he’s very smart. You add those three things, and that adds to a lot of athletic ability,” Zimmer said.

In other words, what Sherman has between the ears makes up for a lack of elite athleticism.

Sherman will tell you he knows what an offense is doing 75 percent of the time based on situation and formation. He knows receiver route combinations based on where they align. He can call out run or pass based on down and distance after learning tendencies through film study.

It’s all a product of his immense study habits and photographic memory, which also helped him get a 4.1 GPA at Stanford.

Sherman ‘sees’ the field differently

“Once I see something, I see it,” the All-Pro told The Bee.

Sherman said he got to that level during his third season with the Seattle Seahawks, around the same time he began to use advice given to him by some of the best defensive backs in history.

“I talked to Deion (Sanders) and Charles Woodson when I was really young and they were hyper athletic when they were young,” Sherman said. “And then once they were older they needed to use between their shoulders to play at a high level. And they told me they wished they had done that earlier because they made the game way too hard on themselves. And I was like, ‘Why wouldn’t I just do that earlier and play the game that way from the beginning?’

“And that’s what I always focused on. If I could play the game and do the things that take no talent, and put myself in position as if I didn’t have speed and didn’t have athleticism, then making those plays when I do is going to be a lot easier.”

Sherman has a strong understanding of what the Vikings do under offensive coordinator Kevin Stefanski because they run a similar scheme to San Francisco’s under Kyle Shanahan, who was tutored by Minnesota advisor Gary Kubiak.

Sherman can also recall almost every play from the last time these teams squared off in the season opener in 2018, which was Sherman’s first game with the 49ers. He allowed one catch on three targets and had a pass breakup.

Sherman’s mind is his best weapon

Defensive coordinator Robert Saleh said he’s never seen another cornerback with a stronger mind for his opponents’ habits than Sherman. But he believes second-year linebacker Fred Warner has a similar acuity when it comes to understanding how offenses will attack.

Though Warner, the one tasked with relaying Saleh’s signals to the huddle, doesn’t necessarily agree. He believes he needs more time in the NFL before he can approach that level.

“I’m for sure nowhere near where Sherm’s at in terms of recognizing formations and stuff like that,” Warner said. “I think that’s because it’s all about experience, seeing plays over and over again, different formations, tendencies and picking up on that. Some guys have a knack for it and Sherm for sure has that. His preparation every week is top of the line, that’s why he competes at such a high level.”

Sherman and Ahkello Witherspoon, who said he’ll return to the starting lineup this week after being benched for the final possession of the Week 17 win in Seattle, will face one of the toughest receiver tandems in the NFL in Stefon Diggs and Adam Thielen, who combined for nine catches and 145 yards the last time the two teams played.

Diggs and Thielen have four 1,000-yard seasons combined over the last two years.

“They can both gain separation,” Saleh said. “They can both catch the ball pretty easily. They’re both very powerful receivers. It’s always a challenge because you can’t account for everyone on the football field.”

This story was originally published January 9, 2020 at 6:17 AM.