San Francisco 49ers: Richard Sherman’s bet on himself paying off

Richard Sherman bet on himself by signing an incentive-laden contract with the San Francisco 49ers, and that bet is so far paying off.

Richard Sherman’s self-negotiated contract with the San Francisco 49ers sparked much debate, but the consensus was that the All-Pro cornerback was betting on himself to get back healthy and return to the peak of his powers. The first step of that plan appears to be nearing completion.

In terms of his 2018 salary, only Sherman’s $3 million signing bonus was guaranteed, with another $2 million set to come his way in the form of a roster bonus if he passes a physical at the start of training camp. His 2017 season with the Seattle Seahawks, of course, was ended by a ruptured Achilles.

Sherman took part in individual drills during the 49ers’ minicamp in June, and the smart money would be on him passing his pre-camp physical after numerous videos emerged on social media of Sherman looking smooth while going through cornerback drills.

https://twitter.com/footwork_king1/status/1012038587787849729

Barring any setbacks, Sherman should be able to net that roster bonus and can turn his attention to being the kind of player he was prior to his injury and, beyond helping the Niners win, he has plenty of motivation to do so.

Sherman’s three-year contract contains up to $2 million in per-game roster bonuses for each season, and he could earn up to $4 million a year in incentives that would take the deal to its maximum value of $39.15 million. He will earn $1 million for playing 90 percent of defensive snaps, $1 million for a Pro Bowl berth and $2 million for an All-Pro selection.

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Should he be named to the 2018 Pro Bowl Sherman will see his $1 million of per-game bonuses for 2019 and 2020 converted to base salary. His $8 million base salary for those two remaining years of his contract would also be guaranteed for injury and vest to fully guaranteed on April 1.

History is instructive and history indicates that if Sherman is healthy he is a strong bet to be playing in the Pro Bowl, having made it for four successive years prior to 2017.

He enters a defensive system inspired by the Cover 3 scheme deployed in Seattle, meaning the transition should be seamless for a corner who has consistently locked down opponents’ top receivers throughout his career.

Indeed, since entering the NFL in 2011, Sherman has allowed just 41.8 prcent of targets in his direction to be completed, limiting opposing quarterbacks to a passer rating of 47.7 on those throws, according to Pro Football Focus.

The passer rating of 75.5 he gave up on throws into his coverage last year is the highest he has allowed in his career, per PFF, but Sherman’s track record suggests 2017 was an aberration and it would be a brave move to bet against a bounce-back season for him, even at age 30.

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Sherman looks on track to be ready for camp and earn his roster bonus. So far, betting on himself appears to have been an astute move by Sherman, if that continues to be the case then both he and the 49ers will benefit from a contract intended to be win-win for player and team.

Contract details per Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk.