Richard Sherman requested to shadow Anquan Boldin in the Seattle Seahawks' Week 2 romp over the San Francisco 49ers. Sherman then completely shut him down.
During the second matchup in Week 14, the 49ers threw away from Sherman, targeting corner Byron Maxwell -- who made his first career start the week earlier. That plan had limited success.
Sherman wrote a glowing review of Maxwell's play for TheMMQB.com. At the end of the piece, Sherman wrote that he would not request to shadow any single 49ers player because of his faith in Maxwell.
"They're the guys who find themselves covering Michael Crabtree or Anquan Boldin in the NFC Championship Game, and sometimes they make the difference between winning and losing," Sherman wrote. "For the Seahawks, Byron Maxwell is that guy. And he's one of the many reasons I believe we'll not only survive, but also dominate on our way to the Super Bowl."
On the "Around The League Podcast," we discussed the possibility of Sherman being able to shut down Michael Crabtree, if he were to follow him around the various formations.
Just because Sherman won't request to shadow Crabtree or Boldin doesn't mean that Seattle won't decide it's the best course of action.
One thing we can be sure of is that 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick will look to avoid throwing Sherman's way.
We've already pointed out that Maxwell can be an X-factor for the Seahawks. His physical play, coupled with the fact that the 49ers could target him often, will put the corner in a position to make plays.
Reading Sherman's breakdown of Maxwell, the Seahawks clearly have faith that the third-year pro, with just six starts under his belt, will hold up just fine under the pressures of the NFC Championship Game.
We have little reason to disagree with that assessment.
We previewed Championship Sunday and sat down with Rams star Robert Quinn in the latest "Around The League Podcast."