Once upon a time, many moons ago, Richard Sherman taunted Tom Brady following a Seattle Seahawks win over the New England Patriots, famously asking the QB: "You mad, bro?"
Now, Brady is recruiting Sherman to join him for a potential Super Bowl run in Tampa Bay.
NFL Network's Tom Pelissero and Ian Rapoport reported Tuesday morning that Sherman is headed to Tampa for a visit with the Buccaneers, per sources informed of the meeting.
It's Sherman's first free-agent visit. Pelissero previously reported that the 33-year-old had received interest from multiple teams in recent weeks.
The veteran corner drew interest early in free agency, but teams weren't willing to meet his asking price.
Then Sherman dealt with an ongoing legal situation. A July incident led to his arrest on five misdemeanor charges -- including driving under the influence and second-degree criminal trespass -- after he crashed his SUV in a construction zone and later tried to force his way into a family member's home.
The arrest was originally reported as a domestic violence incident, but police said Sherman didn't physically assault anyone; he pled not guilty to all charges and pledged to seek help. Pelissero reported that, according to a person close to Sherman, he has been doing magnetic therapy and speaking with a therapist since the incident, helping him work through many issues he didn't have the tools to address before.
The veteran corner is reportedly back to his pre-Achilles tear weight, dropping 15 pounds this offseason. When healthy, Sherman has proven he can still cover NFL receivers. He might no longer be the player who wiped out a whole side of the field in Seattle, but he remains able to stick with receivers and make plays.
The Bucs make perfect sense to pursue Sherman.
Tampa's secondary has been littered with injuries. Sean Murphy-Bunting (elbow) went down early in Week 1. Jamel Dean (knee) exited in Week 3. And Carlton Davis has been on the injury report with abdomen and rib issues. Dean appears to have escaped a serious knee injury, but his status is in doubt for Week 4 against the Patriots, per Pelissero. It's one more reason the Bucs are pushing to get a deal done with Sherman, Pelissero added.
It got so bad this past Sunday against the L.A. Rams that career special teamer Dee Delaney, who'd previously played a whole four snaps on defense since entering the league in 2018, saw 51 plays in the secondary against Matthew Stafford.
That just won't do for the Super Bowl champs.
If Sherman is looking for a place where he can best impact a playoff team with Super Bowl aspirations, the Bucs look like the perfect fit.
