Richard Kevin Sherman (born March 30, 1988) is an American football cornerback for the San Francisco 49ers of the National Football League (NFL). He was drafted by the Seattle Seahawks in the fifth round of the 2011 NFL Draft. He has been selected to the Pro Bowl four times and voted All-Pro four times, including three times to the first team. He led the NFL in interceptions in 2013, when he also helped the Seahawks win their first Super Bowl.

Sherman played college football for the Stanford Cardinal, beginning his career as a wide receiver before moving to cornerback as a junior. He was drafted by the Seahawks in the fifth round of the 2011 NFL Draft. Since entering the league, he has the most interceptions and defended passes of any active player.

During his time as a member of the Seahawks, Sherman was part of the "Legion of Boom", the Seahawks' starting secondary which contributed to Seattle having the best pass defense in the NFL in 2013. This unit helped the Seahawks win Super Bowl XLVIII; their 43–8 win over the Denver Broncos matched the third-largest margin of victory in the history of the Super Bowl. The Seahawks made it to Super Bowl XLIX the following season losing in a close game against the New England Patriots.

On January 29, 2011, Sherman played in the 2011 Senior Bowl and deflected two passes as part of Marvin Lewis' North team that lost 24-10 to the South. Sherman was added as a late replacement after Curtis Marsh Jr. sustained a hamstring injury on the first day of practice. His Senior Bowl performance was well received and was expected to raise his draft stock. Sherman attended the NFL Scouting Combine and completed all of the combine and positional drills.

On March 17, 2011, Sherman participated at Stanford's pro day and attempted to improve on his combine performance. He performed the 40-yard dash (4.53s), 20-yard dash (2.56s), 10-yard dash (1.58s), vertical jump (37"), broad jump (11'0"), short shuttle (4.29s), and three-cone drill (6.72s). At the conclusion of the pre-draft process, Sherman was projected to be selected anywhere from the fourth to sixth rounds by the majority of NFL draft experts and scouts. The Sporting News projected Sherman to be a second round pick and Fox Sports' Peter Schrager projected Sherman to be a fifth round pick. He was ranked as the fourth best cornerback in the draft by The Sporting News, was ranked the 22nd best cornerback by USA Today, was ranked the 24th cornerback prospect by DraftScout.com , and was ranked the 30th best cornerback by Pro Football Weekly.