Richard Sherman

Seahawks' Richard Sherman blasts NFL's disciplinary 'hypocrisy'

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

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Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman criticizes the NFL for its "inconsistent" disciplinary policies in an essay titled "Common Sense," which was published on Thursday in The Players' Tribune.

The essay is a part of Sherman's season-long web series "Tuesdays with Richard on Thursdays."

Sherman expresses frustration with the "hypocrisy" of league's proclivity to penalize players for on-field celebrations when it fails to do enough to address more serious issues such as domestic violence. Sherman says the NFL's attempt to take fun out of the game helps explain the league's declining TV ratings.

"The NFL is enforcing a policy against celebration," Sherman wrote. "Against joy. Against fun. It’s something I know a lot of players are frustrated with, and it appears that fans may be as well. Now, the league is reaping what it has sown."

In reference to the Josh Brown domestic violence situation, Sherman says the NFL's lack of a clear policy makes it "impossible" to hand out effective discipline.

Ultimately, Sherman says the answer is for commissioner Roger Goodell to give up some of his power and to delegate disciplinary issues to a third-party arbitrator.

Last month, Sherman took aim at the NFL in a video for The Players' Tribune, where he asserted that the league doesn't really care about the health of its players.

– Ryan Fish

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Richard Sherman

Seattle Seahawks

National Football League