91.5 Chapel Hill 88.9 Manteo 90.9 Rocky Mount 91.1 Welcome 91.9 Fayetteville 90.5 Buxton 94.1 Lumberton 99.9 Southern Pines 89.9 Chadbourn

The Bit Of Sportsmanship That Led To Richard Sherman's Rant

Richard Sherman on the football field.
Elaine Thompson

You've almost certainly heard about Seattle Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman's post-game rant from over the weekend.

As Mark reported, it sparked a great deal of controversy because he got loud and instead of answering questions from a reporter, he screamed at the microphone and looked straight into the camera to deliver a message to San Francisco 49ers receiver Michael Crabtree.

Now, thanks to NFL.com, we have video and audio of the moment that sparked the post-game interview heard around the world.

What's surprising is that Sherman — known as one of the NFL's best trash talkers — showed sportsmanship after he tipped his opponent's pass into the hands of one of his teammates.

Instead of gloating, he's heard telling Crabtree, "Hell of a game," and reaching for a handshake. Crabtree doesn't shake his hand; instead he pushes Sherman's helmet.

As Bleacher Report puts it, Sherman's behavior certainly doesn't fit that of the "thug" some have accused him of being after the interview.

Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • Email
Eyder Peralta is NPR's East Africa correspondent based in Nairobi, Kenya.
More Stories
  1. Nebraska Republican brings resolution to censure Ilhan Omar
  2. Biden decries surge of antisemitism since the October 7 Hamas attacks on Israel
  3. Brittney Griner reflects on 'Coming Home' after nearly 300 days in a Russian prison
  4. What we can learn from 4 schools that have reached agreements with Gaza protesters
  5. TikTok challenges U.S. ban in court, calling it unconstitutional