Sherman said to be skipping voluntary workouts

Perhaps signaling dismay with his current situation, CB Richard Sherman was reported to be skipping the team’s voluntary workouts that began Tuesday. The Seahawks have been listening to trade offers for their star after a 2016 season pickled with controversies. Other players have skipped these workouts in the past, and there is no consequence for absence.

Citing an unnamed source, SI.com’s Albert Breer tweeted the news:

Source: Richard Sherman won’t be at Seahawks’ offseason workouts today, but plans to report in early/mid May, before OTAs.

— Albert Breer (@AlbertBreer) April 18, 2017

The workouts are for conditioning and rehab, with no football drills. Sherman has previously participated, but other players, such as DE Michael Bennett and RB Marshawn Lynch, have skipped them.

The next appearance for players is organized team activities (OTAs) over four weeks in May. A mini-camp in June is the only mandatory requirement.

But before that is the draft beginning April 27.

The belief is that the Seahawks will want to resolve Sherman’s situation before that. General manager John Schneider and coach Pete Carroll have been quoted in interviews saying they are open to trading him, although the price they seek is high enough that it’s more likely than not that Sherman will remain in Seattle.

The Seahawks already have questions at the cornerback spot opposite Sherman, with a knee injury to DeShawn Shead perhaps keeping him out into the regular season. The draft is said to be loaded with premier talent at cornerback and safety, but adding a youngster right away in the Seahawks’ scheme would be perilous.

Sherman reportedly has given his OK to seek trades, with a report by ESPN Adam Schefter saying Sherman was the initiator of the notion of moving on.

Sherman, 29, is still near the peak of his career and has two seasons left on his deal that has a combined price tag of $23 million. But last season was marred by two public episodes of confrontations with coaches during games over decision-making. He also had mild dust-ups with local media.

Sherman was quoted as saying there’s “no bad blood” between him and management, but Carroll said that most of Sherman’s troubles were “self-inflicted” and expressed disappointment that Sherman “hasn’t come back to us” yet.