Richard Sherman vows to return to ‘Undisputed’: ‘This was the plan all along.’

Richard Sherman has not appeared on Undisputed since being arrested for a DUI last month, but his FS1 tenure doesn’t appear to be over.

Sherman was arrested during the early morning hours on February 24 after a Washington State trooper noticed “the odor of intoxicants” on the retired NFL cornerback during a traffic stop for speeding. The following Monday, Undisputed returned to FS1’s airwaves after a week’s vacation and Sherman was noticeably absent. Sherman has yet to appear on Undisputed following the arrest, but recently claimed he will be back.

Last week, The Richard Sherman Podcast released its first episode for Colin Cowherd’s The Volume since Feb. 12. The NFL analyst also tweeted for the first time since his arrest last week, prompting someone to inquire about his status with FS1 and Undisputed.

I will be back. This was the plan all along. When football topics are getting hotter I will be back

— Richard Sherman (@RSherman_25) March 14, 2024

“I will be back,” Sherman responded. “This was the plan all along. When football topics are getting hotter I will be back.”

Sherman joined FS1 last summer as part of Skip Bayless’s quest to revamp Undisputed without Shannon Sharpe. When Andrew Marchand reported on Sherman’s addition to Undisputed, he reported those appearances were expected to be “around 50-100 shows per year, mostly during football season.”

Considering the fluidity of his schedule, Sherman can miss a month and still see his show appearances fall within the 50-100 episode range for the year. It would seem, however, that NFL free agency should fall into the category of “football topics are getting hotter.” Between Caleb Williams, Russell Wilson, Kirk Cousins, Aaron Donald, and Aaron Rodgers considering a run at becoming Vice President of the United States, there has been no shortage of hot football topics in recent weeks.

To further depict the NFL is still hot, Undisputed has continued to feature either Keyshawn Johnson or Michael Irvin on every show since Sherman’s absence began last month. Johnson and Irvin are obviously known more for the NFL than anything else. And with Undisputed’s floundering ratings, Sherman might not have the luxury of waiting for the right topic before returning to the show.

While Sherman has stated he will be back and his current absence is just part of the plan, Bayless and FS1 have not issued any updates on the analyst following his arrest.

[Richard Sherman]