It wasn’t karma that got Cam Newton last week, it was the dress code.
And Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman obviously couldn’t resist getting in one last dig at the Panthers quarterback, saying he thought coach Ron Rivera did the right thing benching him for the first series (which lasted one play) for not wearing a tie on the team flight to Seattle.
“You’ve got accountability,” Sherman said, via Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times. “You’ve got to hold everybody accountable the same. When you start treating guys different it’s a slippery slope.”
That’s effectively the message Rivera was sending, trying to bury it yesterday by saying he didn’t want to create “chaos” by not applying the rules equitably.
Of course, it’s easier for Sherman to have a more relaxed take on it, since Seahawks coach Pete Carroll apparently has a more relaxed set of rules about fashion.
“There’s not a ton of them,” Sherman said of Carroll’s rules. “For one-day trips, it’s more formal. You wear polo shirts or jeans or something nicer. Very ambiguous but nicer. But put your shoes on — he doesn’t like me wearing my Uggs. For two-day trips it’s more casual because it’s obviously going to be a time change and a longer flight, so he allows us to wear kind of whatever you put on.”
Sherman also said Carroll “doesn’t go back there and check” to see what guys are wearing.
“If you are asking have we ever run into anything like that? We haven’t,” Sherman said. “Pete is a pretty cool guy. Don’t be disrespectful and most guys respect the things he says and are pretty good about that.”
That may be the biggest issue some have with Rivera’s rules. The application of the rule is fine and just and fair, but the rule itself seems dated considering Newton’s travel day outfit was about the most conservative thing he’s worn all season.
