Is Richard Sherman Really “Better At Life” Than Skip Bayless

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Ride The Pine

3 min readMar 9, 2013

If you don’t like either Seattle Seahawks defensive back Richard Sherman or ESPN’s master debater Skip Bayless, than this video may be completely mind-numbing [although you can enjoy the fact that Stephen A Smith sits silent the whole time]. The argument stemmed from Bayless’ belief that Sherman is not an elite NFL cornerback, certainly not in the league of the New York Jets Darrelle Revis, and has allowed his trash talking to overshadow his talent on the field. The heated exchange on Thursday’s edition of ESPN’s First Take featured some zingers from Sherman as he attacked Bayless. The line that was most reported and most newsworthy — “In my 24 years of life, I’m better at life than you.” — is something we will examine a little more in detail.

What does it mean to be “better at life?” We will examine 5 different areas — integrity, educations, friendships, athletics, and speaking ability — that will asses who is truly better at life.

Integrity

Richard Sherman: Integrity became a big issue for Sherman when he was suspended 4 games in November 2012 for violating the NFL’s Substance Abuse policy after testing positive for Adderall. Sherman eventually won an appeal based on the fact that the sample was transferred to a new cup after the first one was leaking. The use of a second cup is against testing policy and procedure but in our eyes does not discredit the fact that Sherman tested positive for the banned substance. Finding a loophole does not make you innocent. Sherman ended the year with 8 interceptions and 3 force fumbles, his best statistical season in his young career. Remember how good Shawne Merriman was before his positive drug test? Just saying.

Skip Bayless: Although never accused of plagiarism, his integrity has been question twice during his career. First, and most famously, when he referenced rumors that Dallas Cowboys quarterback Troy Aikman was gay in his 1994 book Hell-Bent: The Crazy Truth About the “Win or Else” Dallas Cowboys. Bayless never specifically stated that Aikman was homosexual but quotes from teammates and the coaching staff saying as much — never had evidence to support the claim. More recently, Bayless was challenged by Jalen Rose in April 2012 episode of First Take on his high school basketball credentials. Bayless never lied in any of his statements or tweets but definitely did not tell the whole story until he was forced to defend himself.

Winner: Bayless
Although some of his antics have been questionable, Bayless has never been caught cheating.

Education

Richard Sherman: Graduated from Stanford University with a Communications degree. Stanford is ranked #6 in US News National Universities ranking.

Skip Bayless: History and English major at Vanderbilt University. Vandy is the #17 ranked school in US News National Universities ranking.

Winner: Sherman

Friendships

Richard Sherman: In just two years in the NFL, Sherman hasn’t made a lot of friends. He has had a Twitter war with Revis and taunted Tom Brady on the same social media network with a picture asking “u mad, bro.” He was also annoying enough to have Washington Redskins lineman Trent Williams slap him in the face after the Wildcard round of this year’s playoffs.

Skip Bayless: It seems that most professional athletes hate Skip. It seems that most members of the media hate Skip. To generate all that hate, his words must come with a lot of respect. How many times did you seen Bayless shake hands on the old First Take set with a member of the media, athlete, or entertainment world ? Almost everyday. How many times did you see someone slap him? None.

Winner: Bayless

Athletics

Richard Sherman: The dude is a cornerback in the NFL and made All-Pro in his second year.

Skip Bayless: The dude averaged 1.4 points in his senior year of high school basketball.

Winner: Sherman

Speaking Ability

Richard Sherman: From a guy with a communications degree from Stanford, he sure does struggle taking a complete thought and putting it into a sentence.

Skip Bayless: He may not always know what he is talking about but at least I can follow what he is saying.