Richard Sherman made a triumphant return to the 49ers last week, picking off Jared Goff to help upset the Rams in a must-win game. The star cornerback wasn’t basking in the glow of that victory this week though, as he bluntly talked about his future with Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports. In the interview, Sherman said he doesn’t expect to be back in San Francisco next season. “We’ve had brief conversations,” Sherman said about a new contract. “I think that there’s obviously a want from both sides to come back and make this work. Unfortunately, I don’t know that the circumstances will allow it.” Expounding further, Sherman made it clear that the 49ers are going to have to extend a lot of their core guys soon, and there simply might not be enough money left over for him.
“There are a ton of guys that need to be paid and are coming up,” he said. “Fred Warner is coming up. There are, like, 40 free agents who need to be re-signed. At the end of the day, they have to do what’s best for the majority, for the team. And I got to understand that. And so the numbers are adding up to that I won’t be here, unless something miraculous happens, which would be really cool.” Sherman, who serves as his own agent, doesn’t seem to harbor any hard feelings about this potential reality. It’s a mature and nuanced take for a star player to have. The former Seahawks All-Pro has remained very productive since joining the 49ers in 2018, but he’s missed almost all of this season with a calf injury. He’ll be a free agent in March.
- The big story of Week 13 so far has been the benching of Carson Wentz. Doug Pederson finally pulled the plug and inserted Jalen Hurts in the second half of Philly’s loss to Green Bay, and the rookie immediately provided a spark. He threw for a touchdown on a fourth and 19, and moved the offense much better than Wentz did even though he did have a game-sealing interception at the end. But speaking after the finish, Pederson wasn’t ready to announce his plans for Week 14. In his post-game press conference, the Super Bowl winning coach declined to name a starter and insisted his mind wasn’t made up yet. That being said, it would be pretty shocking if it wasn’t Hurts. When a coach declines to say his usual starter will be out there the next week, he almost always ends up getting replaced during the week. With more than $50MM in guaranteed money still coming his way over the next couple years, it’s anyone’s guess what the Eagles will do with Wentz, who leads the league in interceptions with 15.
- Philip Rivers led the Colts to their eighth win of the season Sunday, beating the Texans and moving back into a tie for first place in the AFC South. But although he’ll continue to play, Rivers is apparently dealing with a very significant injury. The veteran passer is dealing with a “plantar plate rupture” in his foot, which can essentially be described as a really bad case of turf toe, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports (Twitter video link). Rapoport adds that it’s bad enough that Rivers will need surgery after the season to fix it. It sounds like the kind of injury that could sideline some players, but not the Iron Man Rivers. Incredibly, the signal-caller has never missed a start since taking over the Chargers’ job all the way back in 2006. Considering he once played a playoff game on a torn ACL, this isn’t too surprising. It didn’t seem to effect him all that much on Sunday, as he carved up Houston for 285 yards and two touchdowns with no turnovers.
- In case you missed it, Titans first-round tackle Isaiah Wilson’s disaster of a rookie season got even worse this weekend when the team suspended him for violating team rules.
I think Wentz just needs to sit out the rest of the season and review some game film. He looks lost and uncomfortable in the pocket; clearly a far cry from the previous three seasons. Perhaps he isn’t seeing things right and needs some time to adjust.
It’s too early to give up completely on Wentz especially considering his exorbitant contract. I would give him another season, but he will have to battle it out with Hurts. Hopefully he isn’t a lost cause and will find the solution to his issues.
Rivers is absolutely insane and one of the most underrated teammates in league history. Even in his 17th season, he’s still putting his team on his back. Tough as nails
Wentz’s biggest issue this year is he is holding onto the ball too long. That is not all his fault as the WR crew has been pretty piss poor for him. I agree it was time to see what Hurts has because Wentz looked lost and was very hesitant. However, I think Wentz is still the best QB on the roster.
Rivers continues to amaze me. Other guys would be done for the year.
Agreed mostly with both of the above. I also think that, while it is undeniable that Hurts moved Philly’s offense with much greater ease, it is also prudent to note that he did so a lot with his legs. The line was giving up pressure every snap and receivers were not getting open. Goedert had a few plays and Jeffrey was open at times as well (in Jeffrey’s case, Hurts was either pressured/sacked on those plays or on one occasion, missed the read). The line was absolutely the major problem this game. Undeniably so. Both Wentz and Hurts were hit all game, numerous times having linemen collapsed right on top of them.
There’s not much point in starting an injury prone and expensive quarterback during a lost season behind that mess of a line, though. Hurts can get some experience, though, which will be helpful no matter what happens. Pederson should go, however. His playcalling really did not help either of his quarterbacks, despite his defense giving the offense a chance and a Jalen Reagor punt return score that made the offense look more competent than it was. Relying on Hurts to simply improvise and use his legs to compensate for poor scheming is not an example of good coaching. I’m glad Hurts is getting experience, but the vast majority of his production came off his own extension of plays and not Pederson’s playcalling.
Wentz is making this fantasy owner wince! His bagel yesterday probably cost me playoffs.
If you started wentz, you don’t belong in fantasy playoffs.
Listening to Pederson&Wentz at a press conference is like listening to trump you know it’s all BS.
Why politics it makes you look petty. Before any stupid comments I hate Trump. Just hate politics on this board more.
Gods, I’d love to see Sherman on the Vikings. I wanted us to sign him in 2018, which of course wasn’t going to happen, but I really like him.