49ers free agency: Why Richard Sherman remains unsigned in 2021

While 2021 NFL free agency has been weird, former 49ers cornerback Richard Sherman remains on the open market despite his known talents.

As far as best-remaining free agents in 2021 go, you’ll see former San Francisco 49ers cornerback Richard Sherman towards the very top of most lists out there.

Sherman’s departure from the Niners was known long before the negotiating window opened on March 15. He told NBC Sports Bay Area’s Matt Maiocco back in December of last year the chances of a reunion with San Francisco were “not looking likely.”

Well over three weeks after the opening of NFL free agency, Sherman remains on the list of available players yet to land with a team this offseason.

Why?

There’s no questioning Sherman’s pedigree. The five-time Pro Bowler and three-time first-team All-Pro has been one of the most dominant cornerbacks of the last decade, which included his three-year span with the 49ers after jumping ship from their NFC West division rivals, the Seattle Seahawks.

And, well… there’s this:

https://twitter.com/PFF/status/1376912097745981443

Speaking of birthdays, Sherman just turned 33 years old. That certainly factors into the equation regarding why other teams haven’t expressed interest in the veteran this offseason.

Or if they have, any would-be offers haven’t met Sherman’s own asking price. He is, after all, his own agent.

But there has to be more to it than just age.

Sherman was limited to 14 games during his first year with the Niners, 2018, still dealing with the setbacks following a serious Achilles injury suffered the previous year. And while 2019 was relatively injury-free, his 2020 efforts were hindered by multiple injury setbacks, which held him out of all but five games total.

That doesn’t work in his favor either.

It’s also possible Sherman wants to be picky with his choices. Nothing wrong with that. Staying on the West Coast could be a priority. And with it being so late in his career, Sherman might only want to sign with a legitimate Super Bowl contender instead of a rebuilding squad like the New York Jets or Jacksonville Jaguars. You’d have to ask him about that, though.

Perhaps the biggest element, however, has been the NFL free agency market on cornerbacks. It’s been cool, and not in the good sense of the word.

Richard Sherman, 49ers both affected by slowish cornerback free-agent market

In a way, the 49ers benefited from teams being bearish on free-agent cornerbacks this offseason. Hence why two of Sherman’s former teammates, Jason Verrett and K’Waun Williams, signed notably inexpensive one-year deals — $5.3 million and $1.13 million, respectively, per Over the Cap.

Verrett was locked up relatively quickly, while Williams had to wait for almost two weeks before his deal with the Niners was eventually reported.

Overall, though, there wasn’t the aggressive offseason movement on cornerbacks that would have been a bit more common in non-COVID free-agent periods like the one affecting 2021.

And it hurts even more to be a free-agent cornerback over 30 years old.

As of April 2, of the 35 cornerbacks who would turn 30 years old in 2021, only 15 have either re-signed with their original teams or have found new homes elsewhere so far this offseason. That’s less than half.

Some, like 32-year-old veteran corner Casey Hayward, who played over 75 percent of the Los Angeles Chargers’ defensive snaps last season, remain unsigned. Hayward played 14 games last season to Sherman’s five. The former would seemingly have the health advantage, too, yet both remain free agents.

What it’s looking like is Sherman, and Hayward for that matter, both hit the open market at a poor time when many teams were going to be cautious with cap space. And there haven’t been too many lucrative deals for free-agent corners this offseason anyway.

Sherman likely remains a free agent until after the NFL Draft in late April/early May when corner-needy teams potentially hone in on some additional help after the dust from the draft settles a bit. Whether or not it’s back with the 49ers is anyone’s guess, as the Niners do have needs there despite retaining players like Verrett and Williams.

But for now, it’s likely there won’t be any additional traction on Sherman for at least a few more weeks.