Richard Sherman was released by the Seattle Seahawks on March 9, but it didn't take him long to find a new team. Just one day later, he'd signed with the San Francisco 49ers - and the struggling NFC West franchise got themselves one hell of a player. The cornerback is a Super Bowl champion and played a key part helping the Seahawks win in 2014 as a member of the Legion of Boom.Together with the likes of Kam Chancellor and Earl Thomas, Sherman and the LOB crushed opposition offenses for a number of seasons.And his impressive defensive performances also earned him personal success. The cornerback has been to the Pro Bowl four times and was a first-team all-pro in three of his seasons in Seattle.The Seahawks decision to release Sherman looks like a strange one - given his stats. But it was one that has been coming. And Seattle's loss is San Francisco's gain. In fact, it also appears that they've managed to negotiate a very good deal with the 29-year-old too. Sherman signed a three-year, $27 million deal - but he did it his own way. He didn't have an agent and negotiated completely on his own, which is very rare these days. And many have been questioning his decision. The contract relies heavily on incentives and in order to earn a lot of his money, Sherman will have to play at a high level and remain injury free. His deal has been getting a lot of attention from those around the league and even the recently retired Joe Thomas believes Sherman could have negotiated himself a better contract.

However, Sherman has responded to his critics this week and he's explained why he took the deal.

"I wanted to be represented by somebody who was going to look out for my best interest and nothing else. So I thought, Who better than me?" he said, via The Players' Tribune

"But I wasn’t just going to fly by the seat of my pants. I downloaded past contracts from the NFLPA database and with the union’s help, spent a lot of time studying the language and structure and nuances within contracts. 

"In my new deal with the 49ers, I get a guaranteed $3 million signing bonus right off the bat and another $2 million if I pass a physical before November 11… $5 million for just signing the contract and passing a physical is a big win for me. 

"On top of my signing bonus and my $2 million base salary for 2018, we put incentives in the contract that will pay me more depending on how much I play - on both a per-game basis and a percentage of defensive snaps - as well whether or not I make the Pro Bowl or the All-Pro team.

"All in all, including my signing bonus, I could earn as much as $13 million for 2018."

In simple terms, if Sherman performs as well as he thinks he can, then he'll make a lot more money that he would have if he'd signed a traditional deal - one an agent would have suggested he should take.