Bullies on the Corner: Seahawks Cornerbacks are Tough to Deal With

Ladies and gentleman be aware.

Be aware of what you may ask.  Well, let me elaborate.  The Seattle Seahawks have come across two of the biggest and strongest cornerbacks that the NFL has to offer.  They are villains, beasts, bullies with something to prove playing the position.  They go by the names of Brandon Browner and Richard Sherman.  These two corners have the height of a NBA shooting guard, the physicality of a linebacker, and the trash talking ability of a boxer.

Browner  (6’4, 221 pounds) and Sherman  (6’3, 195 pounds) are second year starters for a Seattle Seahawks defense that is ranked fourth in the NFL.  Browner had quite a journey to end up where he is today. The 28-year-old attended college at Oregon State and was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Denver Broncos in 2005.  He spent five years in the Canadian Football League before coming over to Seattle last season.  Since coming to Seattle he has started since day one under Pete Carroll.

Sherman attended Stanford University where he was the 154th overall draft pick in round five of the 2011 NFL draft.  He started his Stanford career as a wide receiver, in which he was named a Freshman All-American leading the Cardinals in receiving that year.  Sherman didn’t switch to cornerback until his last two seasons at Stanford, because of a team need.  During those two years he caught six interceptions and had 112 tackles.  The Compton, CA native earned his spot as a starter as he was given the position after impressing coaches during a stint where he started in place of injured Marcus Trufant last season.

These two on the field at the same time are literally deadly.  Most recently they have started to ring bells around the league as the Seahawks are starting to win games against formidable opponents.  Sunday the Seahawks took on the New England Patriots, in which they were the underdogs going into the game.  The Patriots were off to a great start as they led 23-10 in the fourth quarter with 9:21 remaining in the game. 

 However, the defense of the top ranked, at the time, Seahawks just kept fighting and continued to give Russell Wilson and the offense a chance late in the game.  There was one play in particular where Brandon Browner knocked Wes Welker senseless when catching a pass on a crossing route, which sent a message to the Patriots early on.  On the Seahawks last two drives they drove down field and scored touchdowns, which led to a 24-23 win.  Richard Sherman, who picked off Tom Brady in the third quarter, made sure he let the three-time super bowl champion know that the Seahawks defense doesn’t play any games.  He tweeted after the game, “Patriots fans mad lol… Talking bout Super Bowl rings…. What have u done lately? Oh your 3-3 lol.”  Like I stated earlier, trash talking at it’s finest.

If you haven’t had a the opportunity to watch these two giants go to work on the corners, make sure you tune in Thursday night.  They will be nationally televised on NFL Network against their divisional rival San Francisco 49ers.  Both teams currently have records of 4-2 and will be fighting for a spot atop the NFC West.  Should be one physical slug fest, as both teams have top ranked defenses.  The Niners come off a dismal outing versus the Giants where they lost 26-3, so they should come out motivated to make up for that embarrassing performance. This is a must see game, and as fans, you must see these cornerbacks in action.

Josiah Turner

Twitter: @EspnsJsiah