SANTA CLARA — Richard Sherman has played in countless big games in his Hall of Fame career. He’s been an impact player in two Super Bowls, 12 playoff games, and all of the big, important contests that led to those postseason showdowns.
In comparison to those games, Sunday’s contest between the 49ers and Bears was wholly unimportant. After all, the 49ers haven’t been in the playoff hunt for months, leading some fans to actively rooting for the team to lose, just so the Niners can land a better draft pick.
It would have been easy to forgive Sherman if he had coasted Sunday — if the veteran had taken the day off or took it easy on his surgically repaired Achilles Tendon in the penultimate game of a lost season.