Blue 42: The Seahawks can’t replace Richard Sherman, but have options at CB for a playoff push
Nov 10, 2017, 12:11 PM | Updated: 1:07 pm
Richard Sherman played with the Seahawks for seven seasons. (AP)
(AP)
The Seahawks are facing a big question heading into their final seven games of the regular season: how can you replace All-Pro cornerback Richard Sherman?
Quite frankly, you can’t. Sherman hasn’t missed a game in his seven-year career with the Seahawks and has been a lynchpin of their perennially top-tier defense. He’s one of the toughest, most outspoken members of this squad. It’s also why, despite the Seahawks’ 22-16 win over the Cardinals, the news that he suffered a season-ending Achilles injury Thursday night felt like a punch to the gut.
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Still, Seattle is in the thick of the NFC playoff race, and in order to make a real push it ill need to find a way to fill the gap in its secondary. Brock Huard explored Seattle’s options in his Blue 42 segment on 710 ESPN Seattle’s Brock and Salk.
One target is 29-year-old Byron Maxwell, a former member of the Seahawks’ Legion of Boom who was cut by the Dolphins last month.
“Obviously he was cut, he’s bounced around. He doesn’t have anything near the twitch and speed that Richard is going to bring, but he’s got a familiarity and a background,” Huard said. “I think that that is the known commodity, as long as there’s not a health or injury issue there, which sometimes we don’t always hear or see everything behind the scenes… but I think in this case he’s priority No. 1 because of his background (and) because he will at least be in the right spot.
“Can he get there, can he make the plays, can he tighten down coverage the way Richard can? No,” Huard said. “But he will at least be in the spot in the defense that he is supposed to be. … I think a Byron Maxwell makes a whole lot more sense (compared to former Colts cornerback Vontae Davis) if he can still run and move at all, and I would expect that sooner than later.”
Maxwell was originally drafted by Seattle in 2011, and was the starting corner opposite Sherman from 2013 to 2015. He signed with the Eagles prior to the 2015 season and was traded to the Dolphins in 2016.
Listen to Huard’s entire breakdown embedded above.
