12s should cheer Richard Sherman when he plays the Seahawks at CenturyLink

Former Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman returns to CenturyLink on Sunday. How should 12s welcome the now-49ers corner?

Richard Sherman was a great cornerback for the Seahawks. He was also a bit of a cancer in the locker room during his last season with the team. This offseason, after Seattle released Sherman, the cornerback spoke poorly about the organization and specific players, like quarterback Russell Wilson.

There have also been national articles, like the one ESPN  The Magazine produced in 2017 citing unnamed players talking about how bad the atmosphere was in Seattle. It is pretty safe to assume Sherman was at least one of the unnamed players talking smack about the Seahawks.

And Sherman has always been more about himself than he was about the team. The NFL is a business and Sherman has used it to make money and build endorsements. And he should. Players have a small window to make a lot of money that could be generational. One shouldn’t blame Sherman for using the system.

But 12s can blame him for lack of maturity. Sherman is a smart guy and he likes to talk, on the field and off it. He speaks with intelligence but many 12s might think he simply talks too much.

This week prior to Sunday’s Seahawks versus 49ers game Sherman was asked about defending Wilson. Sherman said Wilson could be defended and referred to the 2016 game with the Packers when Wilson threw five interceptions. Sherman also said he didn’t really have a relationship with Wilson.

In Sherman’s defense, Wilson did throw those five picks. He was bad that game against Green Bay. But he is also the quarterback who has been to two Super Bowls and carried the entire offense in 2017. Russell Wilson is a good quarterback.

And do we really care if Sherman and Wilson have been best buddies? Why should we care? Not all players on a team get along. Sometimes it is good to have tension in the locker room.

But there is also a reason Sherman isn’t on the team. The Seahawks tired of players like Michael Bennett and Sherman caring more and more about the sounds of their owns voices than in being committed to helping the team win games.

But how should 12s at CenturyLink welcome Sherman back on Sunday? I think they should cheer him. Not to mock Sherman, but to show despite all Sherman has said to spite the Seahawks that Seattle would not have been as successful without Sherman over most of this decade.

So when Sherman runs on the field, 12s should welcome him back positively instead of negatively. But those same 12s should cheer even louder when Wilson and company torch the 49ers generally and Sherman specifically with multiple touchdown passes in week 13.