Richard Sherman believes himself to be a man of a bygone era.
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The Seattle Seahawks' cornerback believes his brash and outspoken demeanor would've been better accepted by the masses in the previous century.
"I feel like my game might be 20 years too late," Sherman said Wednesday in the first of many media dalliances ahead of Super Bowl XLVIII. "Maybe I watched those guys too much. Maybe I studied Muhammad Ali, the Deion Sanderses, the Michael Irvins, the Jerry Rices -- I studied the old-school game more than I studied the new-school game, and I play it that way and it rubs a lot of people the wrong way.
"I guess maybe I just haven't adjusted to the times."
Sherman sees Ali as someone he can relate to, though he (thankfully) understands "what (Ali) had to deal with was a hundred times crazier than it is now."
Still, Sherman disagrees with the notion that his rant toward Michael Crabtree makes him a villain. He finds any characterization of him as a "thug" to be even more distasteful.
"The only reason it bothers me is because it seems like it's the accepted way of calling somebody the N-word nowadays," Sherman said. "It's like everybody else said the N-word, then they say thug and they're like, 'Oh, that's fine.' That's where it kind of takes me aback and it's kind of disappointing because they know."
Another reminder that Sherman knows exactly what he's doing -- and why he's perfect for the Super Bowl stage. The man is feeding the machine with a smile.
*The latest "Around The League Podcast" looked at weaknesses for the two Super Bowl teams. *
