Are the Bears targeting Richard Sherman?

Could Richard Sherman be headed to the Chicago Bears?

There’s been a lot of speculation over the last few days about the future of Seattle Seahawks’ CB Richard Sherman. It started when Seattle Seahawks players started saying goodbye to Sherman on social media. It was then followed up by a post from his mother saying he’s no longer a Seahawk. After a meeting with the Seahawks on Thursday, the news became official on Friday.

Sherman is now a free agent and can sign with any team he chooses. It’s no surprise that the New England Patriots seemed to have emerged as a favorite to land the opinionated cornerback, but it’s interesting what one website was projecting as the team with the second-best odds:

So bookmaker.eu seems to think that the Bears are running second in the odds to land Richard Sherman. Your first reaction might be, well, what does bookmaker.eu know? Well, do you feel the same way about John “Moon” Mullin? Here’s what he wrote in his latest piece:

"Applying the transition tag to Kyle Fuller is only one part of the Bears’ efforts to (again) shore up a tipping-point position in their defense. The Bears are among teams expected to be in the mix for connection with Richard Sherman, likely to be released by the Seattle Seahawks before the start of free agency."

"Sherman, turning 30 on March 30, is coming off a season cut short by an Achilles injury after not missing a game in six previous seasons. But the pairing of a three-time All-Pro, who finished his college career playing for Bears defensive coordinator Vic Fangio at Stanford in 2010, with an ascending player in Fuller would comprise an overall veteran enhancement of a secondary with young safeties Adrian Amos and Eddie Jackson."

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It definitely appears that the Bears are going for Sherman to bolster their secondary. We know they have Adrian Amos and Eddie Jackson at safety. They are going to have Kyle Fuller on one side and probably Bryce Callahan at the nickel. It would be a good move by Chicago to draft a rookie corner that they can develop for a year or two and have Sherman play in front of him for a while until he’s ready to play.

It doesn’t appear that Prince Amukamara is in the team’s future plans. If Amukamara is back in Chicago, that’s most likely because about four plans fell through first. There were also some rumblings that the Bears were interested in Aqib Talib, so the idea of signing Richard Sherman fits the idea that the Bears’ plan may be to sign a veteran CB on a short-term contract while a rookie develops behind him.

Ryan Pace is focused on overhauling the offense, but he knows he can’t ignore the defense. The Bears have to make sure they improve on both sides of the ball. Sherman comes with risk. He’s going to be 30-years old, he’s coming off a major Achilles injury, and he has been a distraction at times in Seattle, but if he returns to form in a Bears’ uniform, he makes the team significantly better.