Richard Sherman – Modern Day Larry Bird

Classless and hilarious?  Qualities we love.

Classless and hilarious? Qualities we love.

Ok, it’s about time The Machine chimed in on Sherman-gate.  Unless you’re a foreigner or an MLS fan, you know the story:  Seahawks clinging to a 6 point lead, Niners driving down the field for what felt like an inevitable game winning touchdown (why did they stop running Kap in the second half?).  Kap throws a fade to Crabtree, Sherman tips the ball, Malcolm Smith intercepts it.  Game over. Seattle’s on their way to the Super Bowl.  And then the crazy began.

Sherman, who’s had a long running feud with Michael Crabtree, had one of the most infamous post-game interviews of all-time.  Take a look: 

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and this one

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Richard Sherman instantly became public enemy number one…and instantly set himself up for a crazy media day at the Super Bowl.  He’s been labled classless, a thug, an arrogant athlete with no respect for the game.  We’ve watched the tape, incessantly over the last week, and we can finally conclude the following:  Greatest.  Post-game Interview.  Ever.

That’s right, we love it.  For many reasons.  Hear us out.

It’s refreshing.  How many bland, dry, cookie-cutter post-game interviews do you see that sound like this:  “First and foremost, I want to thank our lord and savior Jesus Christ, and my teammates and the fans!”  Yeah, because JC’s a huge football fan.  These interviews are boring, predictable, and lame.

When you make this play, you get to talk.

When you make this play, you get to talk.

Sherman was different.  It was raw, honest, brash…and amazing.  And it was set up perfectly.  It’s not a well-kept secret that Sherman and Crabtree have an ongoing feud that started at a charity softball event a year ago (of course).  So to be in the NFC Championship Game, 4th quarter, matched up against your arch enemy…and you make the play that sends your team to the Super Bowl…it doesn’t get sweeter than that.

Oh, but it does get sweeter.  Sherman, a Stanford grad, was coached in college by Jim Harbaugh, now coach of the Niners.  Sherman also has beef with his old coach, who he admittedly has no relationship with and perhaps blames for falling all the way to the 5th Round in the Draft.

So, you beat your old college coach, your team’s biggest rival, and your biggest enemy.  The odds of those things lining up are so slim…so why not take full advantage of it?

And Sherman didn’t take advantage of the situation as much as he just let his emotions out, in the most purest way possible, without all the bullshit clichés and praise to God and mom. 

And let’s get a couple other things out too.  First, it’s hard to really paint the Niners as victims in this situation, they hate (and talked as much trash to) the Seahawks as Sherman did.  Do you think if Crabtree caught that pass he’d walk up to Sherman and say, “good game”?  Hell no.  Let’s not forget it’s the same Niners team that mocked Cam Newton by doing the Superman endzone celebration the week before.  They’re not really a sympathetic bunch.

And, can we stop with the whole “he’s a thug/disrespecting the game/why do these kids have to trash talk/this didn’t happen why I was growing up” bullshit?  We’re all a bit nostalgic about “our” era of sports…it’s why (old) people want to condemn A-Rod and Bonds but condone Willie Mays and the 1970’s Pittsburgh Steelers.  It’s completely revisionist history.  Just because you see something new, doesn’t mean it hasn’t happened before.

THUGLIFE

THUGLIFE

Want to know who one of the biggest trash talkers in all of sports is?  Larry Bird, who was recently voted the #2 trash talker of all time.  That’s right, the pride of French Lick, Indiana…where thugs are born.  But with Larry (and all players from earlier generations) the difference is you hear these stories second and third hand (Larry’s trash talking stories are awesome, btw).  Nowadays, with players mic’d up and cameras all over the field, you get to hear it first-hand.

Sherman didn’t do anything new…he just elevated trash talking to a new level by addressing it directly the American public.  Trash talking isn’t a thug thing…it’s a competitive thing.  And the best in the business are the most competitive, so let’s not be surprised that they also talk the most shit.  Note:  if you’re going to tell your dad that Richard Sherman’s a modern-day Larry Bird, you better sit him down first. 

NFL should've fined him more for that suit.

NFL should’ve fined him more for that suit.

Where we do think he crossed the line was during his post-game press conference, where he continued to pile it on.  Once you got your point across on the field (multiple times), and had time to reflect, take a shower, throw on a ridiculous bow tie, that’s when some humility should set in.  Continuing to bash Crabtree at that point was too much. 

Anyway, The Machine will take Sherman’s heat of the moment, off the cuff remarks, which for being spur of the moment was pretty funny, over some canned speech or choreographed endzone celebration any day of the week.  This is a joke, right?

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