Richard Sherman is ready to go.
The veteran cornerback made his game debut with the 49ers this past weekend in the team’s third exhibition game vs. the Colts. After surgery on his Achilles’ tendon, rehab and then some hamstring trouble early in training camp, Sherman was eager to get back on the field to shake the dust off his game and get ready for Game 1 of the regular season.
The results? Just fine. Sherman was targeted just once in the game and broke up the pass from Andrew Luck. It’s unlikely he’ll play many snaps – or at all – in Thursday’s final exhibition game vs. the Chargers, so Sherman will go into the regular season most likely with just one game outing – and he seems fine with that.
“There were some good plays, and there were some other plays that I felt rusty on,” Sherman told Joe Fann of 49ers.com. “Overall it felt pretty good, better than expected. I’m definitely ready to go, but you just never know how your body is going to respond to a heavy workload. … But I held up pretty well.”
Sherman played the entire first half before exiting. Niners head coach Kyle Shanahan liked what he saw.
“I think it was a success in terms of the amount of plays he got,” Shanahan said. “Just talking to him on the sideline it seemed like he felt real healthy. I think he got out what he wanted to. It looked like he was able to make a couple of plays, also.”
Sherman will start at one corner, opposite of Ahkello Witherspoon, the promising second-year player. It’s expected that Sherman’s presence will make a big impact on the defensive backfield. The former All-Pro with the Seahawks has been a leader on the 49ers defense since he joined the team early this offseason.
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Recently, Sherman said he was excited to sign with the 49ers. He loved the way the team’s offense came to life with quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo late last season and he made an instant connection with Shanahan.
“These guys believed that they can win,” said Sherman, of why he signed with the 49ers.
The final exhibition game Thursday vs. the Chargers at Levi’s Stadium is set to kick off at 7.
