Dan Patrick discussing Richard Sherman's criticisms of Russell Wilson Photo Credit: Dan Patrick Show on X
By Reice Shipley on

Despite achieving some great things together, Richard Sherman and Russell Wilson have always had a somewhat contentious relationship. On Thursday, that relationship became further strained when Sherman gave his interpretation of Wilson’s career during a conversation about Wilson’s chances to make the Pro Football Hall of Fame one day.

Speaking about Wilson before Thursday’s matchup between the Seattle Seahawks and the Arizona Cardinals, Tony Gonzalez and Richard Sherman discussed what Wilson’s recent benching by the New York Giants means for his legacy.

This prompted Gonzalez to suggest that Wilson’s struggles in recent years may ultimately result in him not being a Hall of Famer by the time his career is over.

Sherman then took things even further, suggesting that Wilson hasn’t been the same player since leaving Seattle, mainly due to the significant impact the Seahawks’ “Legion of Boom” defense had on his tenure.

“Yeah, I agree,” Sherman said, replying to Gonzalez. “I agree. I think you got to judge his career off when the Legion of Boom was there. You had a legendary defense, an all-time defense, and how much success he had and then without that legendary defense, the success he had. Without that legendary defense, he’s been 4-11, 7-8. 0-3 to start with the Giants. He was a winning football player in Seattle and people said, ‘Hey, winningest football player.’ All this good stuff, all these accolades. And now you get to go on your own and you get to prove, ‘Hey, I’m this great quarterback. I’m this guy that’s gonna be dominant.’ And it just hasn’t worked out that way.”

On Friday, Dan Patrick addressed Sherman’s comments, taking issue with what he had to say. Patrick’s beef was that he believes the peak of the “Legion of Boom” defense was actually much shorter than what Sherman is willing to admit.

“This is revisionist history,” said Patrick about Sherman’s comments. “The Legion of Boom went away when Russ was 27. You can point to the last three years. But how about we be fair to what he did in Seattle? Because that is what this is about. And once you are in, aren’t you in the Hall of Fame? Unless there is a scandal, it doesn’t feel like you are gonna play your way out. Now, have I brought up this question? Absolutely, to be fair to the topic, I have said, ‘Is he playing his way out of it?’ My job is to ask the question. Your opinion can be, ‘Of course not.’ But I think you have got to be careful about what Russ did in Seattle without the Legion of Boom. And because of Russ’s contract, you were able to keep players a little bit longer because of that rookie deal.”

On paper, Patrick’s argument has some validity. At most, the Seahawks’ dominant defense lasted until 2016, a season in which they ranked inside the top five in the NFL in total yards allowed and points per game defensively. However, after that, their defense drastically declined in both categories until Wilson’s time in Seattle ultimately came to an end in 2022.

Regardless of whether you believe Wilson is a Hall of Famer or not, Wilson’s accomplishments in Seattle certainly shouldn’t be downplayed. He made the Pro Bowl in nine of his ten years with the organization and, more importantly, led them to the postseason in eight of his ten seasons, including two Super Bowl appearances and one championship.

Maybe Sherman was attempting to prop up his role on the Legion of Boom defense in Seattle. Or, perhaps he honestly does believe that Wilson was a replaceable piece of the Seahawks’ past success while the two played together.

Either way, his comments about his former teammate weren’t exactly fair. Perhaps the biggest takeaway was that Sherman’s disdain for Wilson is still as strong as ever.

About Reice Shipley

Reice Shipley is a staff writer for Comeback Media that graduated from Ithaca College with a degree in Sports Media. He previously worked at Barrett Sports Media and is a fan of all things Syracuse sports.

View all posts by Reice Shipley