Richard Sherman explains why he's working without an agent going into a contract year
- Richard Sherman is entering the final year of his contract and forgoing an agent as he heads into free agency.
- Sherman told Business Insider that he knows his value and didn't feel like he needed an agent.
- Sherman said if he needed help, he could pay a lawyer a cheaper, one-time fee to look over the contract language.
Forgoing an agent has not always worked out very well for some NFL players, but Seattle Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman is confident in representing himself.
In February, Sherman revealed that he isn't using an agent this season, telling ESPN's Brady Henderson that it's "overrated" for him at this stage of his career.
During an interview with Business Insider, Sherman expanded on his reasoning, saying he knows his value and could hire a lawyer to review the contract language if needed.
"I didn't feel like I needed one," Sherman said. "I can have conversations with general managers and understand my value in comparison to other players in the league."
Sherman continued, saying it would be cheaper to hire a lawyer and pay a one-time fee rather than give a cut of his next contract to an agent.
"A one-time fee to any contract lawyer, there are many lawyers that work with the league and through the NFLPA," he said, adding, "There's nothing that an agent could do for me that I couldn't do for myself or I couldn't hire someone to do at a smaller fee."
Sherman is entering a contract year in which he's set to make $11 million. At 29, turning 30 in March, and coming off an Achilles injury, Sherman's 2018 season could be critical in securing his next pay day. He told Henderson that his resume speaks for itself and if that doesn't sway teams, he doesn't know what will.
In 2016, former Seahawks center Russell Okung negotiated his contract without an agent and had it backfire, to a degree. His five-year, $36 million deal was really a one-year, $8 million deal, with the Broncos opting not to pick up the rest of his contract after one year.