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The Seattle Seahawks released Richard Sherman on Friday, hoping to bring him back at a lower cost if he did not find a market for his services. Those hopes quickly turned to fears of Sherman leaving to play for the hated San Francisco 49ers when Sherman was reported to have been seen having dinner with 49ers Head Coach Kyle Shanahan on Friday evening.
Following up on that, reports emerged that Sherman was at the 49ers facilities in Santa Clara on Saturday afternoon for a 1 pm meeting. Several hours into that reported meeting, it was reported that Sherman was in a closed door meeting with top 49ers brass.
Wild 24 hours.
— Peter Schrager (@PSchrags) March 11, 2018
Per sources, at this moment (4:30 pm PST), Richard Sherman is in Santa Clara , in a room meeting with top 49ers executives. Among those SF executives— President Of 49ers Enterprises Paraag Maarthe and GM John Lynch. @gmfb @nflnetwork @NFLonFOX
John Lynch, as the GM of the 49ers, is responsible for the 49ers roster. Paraag Maarthe is the chief contract negotiator and salary cap expert. When those two are in a meeting that is lasting several hours, it's not hard to figure out the likely outcome, and according to reports, the much feared result is already being reported.
And now it’s done: 49ers and CB Richard Sherman reached agreement tonight on a three-year deal, source tells ESPN.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) March 11, 2018
Sherman is a 49er.
And that's that. All there is to do now is to wait for the details of the contract to emerge. And to wish Richard Sherman best of luck in 14 games a season.
UPDATE: Initial reports have Sherman signing a 3-year, $39M contract with a $5M signing bonus. No word on total guarantees at this time.