How nice of Seattle Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman to lay out the NFC West welcome mat for new Arizona Cardinals first-round choice Michael Floyd.
Hold on a minute. That's not a welcome mat. It's a note on Floyd's new doorstep and a direct challenge to the wide receiver from Notre Dame.
"I'm going to wear him out again," Sherman tweeted. "We play them 1st game stay tuned."
The two matched up as college players in 2010, when Sherman was at Stanford. The Cardinal won that game, 37-14, but Floyd caught eight passes for 110 yards. Floyd gained 37 of those 110 yards on a third-and-12 reception in the final seven minutes, after Stanford had built a 34-6 lead.
I don't know how much Sherman was matched against Floyd that day, but when a Seahawks blogger suggested Floyd's selection by Arizona would be fine by him, Sherman re-tweeted the item and added a postscript: "Yep check my senior tape against ND."
According to Sherman, he dominated Floyd so thoroughly that Floyd's offensive coordinator approached Sherman after the game "and said he had no answer for me."
Floyd should not feel bad. Cornerbacks are notorious for their selective memories.
This approach appears to be Sherman's style. He called Cincinnati Bengals rookie A.J. Green "overrated" last season and then reminded skeptics Thursday night that he had "clamped" Green when the teams played last season. More recently, Sherman suggested Peyton Manning would have at least two tough games if the 49ers signed him.
Self-confidence is great, and Sherman did enjoy an outstanding rookie season. But he'll face some tough challenges in 2012, and even the best cornerbacks falter from time to time.
Floyd faces challenges, too. He comes to the NFC West at a time when teams in the division have upgraded their secondaries.
Seattle sent three defensive backs to the Pro Bowl last season. Sherman was not among them, but he arguably was their best corner by season's end. San Francisco placed two defensive backs in the Pro Bowl. The St. Louis Rams added tenacious corner Cortland Finnegan this offseason.