Coming off the most injury-riddled season of his 10-year NFL career, Richard Sherman admitted that he has his exit plan in mind.
In an ESPN interview Monday, the five-time Pro Bowl cornerback admitted he wants to play just two more seasons before eventually retiring.
Soon to be a free agent after playing his previous three seasons with the San Francisco 49ers, Sherman shared his plan to step away after the 2022 season, when he would be 34.
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“I only want to play two more (seasons),” Sherman said. “I want to get on a competitive team. I think I still have a lot to give to the game. I think I still have a lot that I want to accomplish and I think I can go out there and help a defense come together like it should and reach their potential, reach the heights that the defenses that I’ve played on have reached.”
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Sherman, who turns 33 next month, missed a career-high 11 games due to calf problems that forced him to miss Weeks 2-10 in addition to the final two weeks of the regular season for the 49ers. In his five games, he recorded 18 tackles and one interception as the 6-10 Niners battled injury issues in a first-to-worst season following a Super Bowl appearance in 2019.
In that 2019 regular season, Sherman recorded 61 tackles, three interceptions and 11 passes defensed in 15 games while making his fifth Pro Bowl.
In December, Sherman said he hoped to return to San Francisco, where he has played since 2018, but doubted the team could fit him under its salary cap — which currently projects to have just under $14 million, according to OverTheCap.com. The 2021 salary cap has not yet been officially set.
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Sherman’s first seven seasons were spent with the rival Seattle Seahawks, with whom he made two Super Bowl appearances (winning one) and grabbed 32 interceptions. Sherman also earned three first-team All-Pro selections from 2012-14 as part of Seattle’s “Legion of Boom” defense.
In his 10 seasons, Sherman has amassed 484 tackles, 36 interceptions and 115 passes defensed in 139 games (133 starts).
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–Field Level Media