Richard Sherman seemingly spent the last month of the 2020 season with one foot out the door of the San Francisco 49ers building. He knew he was not returning, mostly due to the team's salary-cap situation, and would hit free agency.
Sherman remains unsigned and recently said he hasn't ruled out a return to the Bay Area team. Although, he didn't expect any movement in the free-agent cornerback market until after the draft.
With the 2021 NFL Draft in the books, Sherman's perspective has changed a bit. He sounds like he would gladly welcome a return to the 49ers, the team with which he spent the last three seasons.
"There's always a chance it could end up working back in the Bay, and I head back that way," Sherman told Max Kellerman and Molly Qerim Rose on ESPN's First Take. "That's another place I'm really comfortable going. Obviously, I know the staff, know the team well. Just spent time there and would be ecstatic if something happened there."
Sherman doesn't anticipate anything being imminent, though, and could envision a potential return as late as during the season, should the 49ers find themselves in sudden need of a veteran cornerback who is familiar with the defense.
"They have a situation," Sherman added, "but it's one of those things that will happen probably late or during the season, if it happens at all."
Sherman also didn't rule out a return to the team that drafted him — the Seattle Seahawks — or the New Orleans Saints. While he likes the fit with the latter, he doesn't feel the Saints need him as much as maybe some other potential destinations might.
The 33-year-old cornerback has 10 years of NFL experience, is a three-time first-team All-Pro, and a five-time Pro Bowl selection. He was named to the NFL 2010s All-Decade Team.
Seattle made Sherman a fifth-round selection out of Stanford in 2011. He registered 18 tackles, a pass defensed, and an interception through five games with the 49ers in 2020, per Pro Football Reference.
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