Richard Sherman arrest likely halts any 49ers reunion

The idea the 49ers could bring free-agent cornerback Richard Sherman back in 2021 just took a hit in the wake of his recent arrest on Wednesday.

Earlier this offseason, there seemed to be a slim but plausible chance the San Francisco 49ers would entertain bringing 33-year-old veteran free-agent cornerback Richard Sherman back into the fray.

Well, those prospects probably just went away for good now.

On Wednesday morning, former 49ers.com writer and current Seattle Seahawks insider for NBC Sports Northwest, Joe Fann, reported Sherman had been booked into King County Correctional Facility for Burglary Domestic Violence:

ESPN’s Adam Schefter corroborated the report shortly thereafter.

While it’s important to point out the details of whatever incident occurred are few, and there’s going to be a pending investigation, the arrest clearly isn’t beneficial to the five-time Pro Bowler’s immediate future.

Sherman, who spent the last three years with the Niners and earned his last Pro Bowl in 2019, stayed a free agent throughout the offseason despite being linked to a number of teams that could potentially use his services.

True, it’s possible any pending charges wind up being dropped and the incident doesn’t rise any further than where it’s at now.

But it certainly doesn’t cast a good light on Sherman and whatever chances he might have had to return to San Francisco.

Potentially anywhere else for that matter.

49ers probably won’t entertain bringing Richard Sherman back now

For the most part, the 49ers remained coy about the idea of re-signing Sherman. While general manager John Lynch and head coach Kyle Shanahan remained open to the idea if the situation was right, they never mentioned any sort of ongoing contractual discussions with the veteran cornerback.

Instead, the Niners used two 2021 NFL Draft picks on rookie cornerbacks, Ambry Thomas in Round 3 and Deommodore Lenoir in Round 5.

Alongside veteran returnees like Jason Verrett, K’Waun Williams, Emmanuel Moseley and Dontae Johnson, it’s likely these two first-year players will receive much more attention now than a would-be Sherman re-sign.

In 2018, Lynch and Shanahan ultimately decided to part ways with one of the team’s first-round picks from the previous year, linebacker Reuben Foster, after repeated legal run-ins. While those charges were eventually dropped, the Foster selection remains one of the more questionable decisions Lynch and Shanahan have made during their tenure atop the Niners front office.

With that as a precedent, it’s highly possible any thought of bringing Sherman back just went out the window in the wake of these troubling developments.