“I’m the best corner in the game.  When you try me with a sorry receiver like (Michael) Crabtree, that’s the result you going to get.”
These words that came out of Seattle Seahawk cornerback Richard Sherman’s mouth Sunday after the NFC Championship game have had the whole sports world in an uproar.  
The term “thug” is misused in sports more times than not, and in Sherman’s case it’s no different. Many have labeled him a “thug” and a “disgrace,” but if people only knew the real Sherman, then they would find out he is the farthest thing from a “thug.”
You can argue that a big reason for the backlash he receives is racially motivated.  
True, Sherman did grow up in the rough city of Compton, Calif., but he didn’t become another statistic. 
Sherman graduated high school with an impressive 4.2 GPA and earned a scholarship to one of the most prestigious schools in the nation, Stanford University. 
While at Stanford, Sherman graduated with a 3.9 GPA and is currently in the process of getting his master’s degree.  And if that’s not enough, he has also started his own non-profit charity organization Blanket Coverage, which aims to provide children with adequate clothes and school supplies. 
Still think he’s a bad guy? I don’t know about you, but I don’t know many “thugs” who have a 3.9 GPA, let alone get accepted into Stanford and start their own charities.
When asked in a press conference Wednesday evening about the criticism he’s receiving, Sherman said he is “uncomfortable” with being called a “thug.”  
Some would in fact say he is a disgrace to the league. But if you think about it, is the NFL really that classy of a league anyway? 
Every year during the offseason, you hear of players getting arrested, being pulled-over for DUI, beating up their girlfriends/wives, etc., but never have you heard Sherman’s name come up with any of those issues. 
You’ve also never heard of another player calling him a “dirty player” either.
Everyone has their own way of expressing himself, and in a live post-game interview, Sherman was caught up in the heat of the moment and expressed his thoughts and voicing his opinions on Michael Crabtree.  
We all have had that moment when we were caught up in the moment and said or did something we might have regretted, but that doesn’t make us a “thug” or “disgrace,” so why should Sherman be treated differently? 
True enough, Sherman could have used more humility in his post-game interview. Throughout the week he has apologized for his remarks and made references saying he was just showing passion.  
As competitors, sometimes competitive spirits gets in the way. 
Sherman acknowledged he knows he might have used immature actions on Sunday, but he also stated that he was mic’d up in the NFC Championship game. 
When he walked up to Crabtree, he was actually giving him props on a good game, but Crabtree rejected his handshake.    
The league, and America for that matter, simply does not like Sherman because he is intelligent and he is the best at what he does.  
Sherman is one of only a few players in the league who can back up his talk.  
Sure, trash-talking is a big part of his game, but if you really think about it, who doesn’t do it? All the greats have — Michael Jordan, Muhammad Ali, Deion Sanders and so on. 
In every sport trash-talking is involved, and, quite frankly, trash-talking is considered to be a game of its own.  
The NFL is a brand, and it accepts the players it wants to. And unfortunately for Sherman, he is one of the players it does not accept.  
Many players give the basic and politically correct response, “They have a good team and give them credit for making plays.”  
Sherman, being the vocally opinionated person he his, voiced his response differently.  
He voiced his answers in the manner that many athletes want to but are just too afraid to, and by doing that, the whole world considers him a “thug” and a “disgrace.”
Although some might not agree with it, Sherman has earned his right to trash-talk simply because he can back it up. 
Defensively, Sherman was thrown at the fewest amounts of times this year, and yet he still managed to lead the league with the most interceptions (eight) this season.  
There’s a saying, “what happens on the field, stays on the field,” and that’s how Sherman’s case should be.  He is a young guy, only 25. We all make mistakes sometimes and say things out of context. We’re all human, but it’s not right to label someone a “thug” and a “disgrace” just because he made a rant on national TV.  
While many well-known figures, including MLB pitcher Justin Verlander, have publically voiced their negative opinions on Sherman, those who know him best, including his former coach at Stanford David Shaw, have also come to his defense and let the world know he is a good guy.  
In reality, Sherman is actually an interesting person, and those two adjectives definitely do not define his character.  
Most people saw his interview and stereotyped him without even knowing anything about him. Some wouldn’t know it, but Sherman has never even cursed in any of his post-game interviews.  
You ask me how I know — I know because I’ve done my research on him, and so should the rest of the world.