Kansas City Chiefs Player Profile: Anthony Sherman

By Josh Michaels | May 23, 2014

Did you know that the Kansas City Chiefs have one of the best full backs in the NFL on their roster? You’d be surprised at how many don’t.

When the Chiefs made the trade to send Javier Arenas to the Arizona Cardinals in exchange for an unknown fullback named Anthony Sherman, the initial thought was what? John Dorsey had just spent a draft pick on former Kansas State fullback, Braden Wilson, so the trade made zero sense at the time. No one knew how well it would turn out.

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Today, I’d like to focus on Anthony Sherman for our player profile. He was one of the best additions to the team in 2013 and seems to be the Chiefs answer at fullback for many years to come.

First, How Did He Get Here?:

Sherman spent his college days in Connecticut playing football for the Huskies. He was drafted in the fifth round of the 2011 NFL Draft by the Arizona Cardinals where he made the team as a special teams contributor.

In 2012, he was named the special teams captain for the Cardinals, proving the type of respect he had earned from his coaches and peers. He’s known to be a guy that puts his head down and does the “dirty work” which is exactly the type of guy every roster in the NFL needs.

Sherman was traded by Arizona because of the hiring of their new head coach, Bruce Arians. Coach Arians was installing his offensive system which does not use the fullback as often, so his spot on the roster had become expendable. Dorsey must have seen something in Sherman because even after drafting a full back, he felt it necessary to make the trade for him.

Thank goodness he did.

A Look At His Stats:

Sherman played in all 16 games last season for KC and did so very well. His numbers are extremely limited as Andy Reid left most of the running to Jamaal Charles.

He only carried the ball twice for a total of three yards but, his contributions in the passing game were often clutch. Sherman finished 2013 with 18 receptions, 155 yards and one touchdown.

He became Alex Smith‘s security blanket, often doing his damage on third downs. His lone touchdown during the regular season came on a beautiful screen pass against the Cleveland Browns and he also found his way in the end zone against the Colts in the wild card game. Sherman showed his ability to make things happen when the ball is in his hands and honestly, it shouldn’t be that surprising.

He was once a standout running back at North Attleboro High School, where he ran for 1,202 yards and 20 touchdowns as a senior and was chosen Massachusetts’ Gatorade Player of the Year in 2006. (source The Kansas City Star)

Not too shabby!

Where Sherman really took his game to the next level was in his ability to run block. Pro Football Focus graded Sherman as THE best fullback in the NFL last season. He earned their first team honors and finished with a grade of +17.9. No other fullback in the NFL graded higher than +9.7. Here’s what PFF wrote when they made him the starter on their All-Pro team,

"We believe a fullback should be a lead blocker, not just a bigger back. Hence why Sherman, the best lead blocker in the league this year, gets the nod. Tolbert wasn’t endorsed by all our voters for this reason, but the logic is he does enough lead blocking and well enough that when put with his other skills he’s better than the rest on offer."

He paved the running lanes for Jamaal Charles all season long and with him only being 25-years-old, there is no reason to believe he’ll be slowing down any time soon.

Conclusion:

According to OverTheCap.com, Sherman is entering his contract season and his very low cap number of $645,000 in 2014 makes him one of the biggest value players on the roster. If he has a similar season to last year, Sherman could make a serious argument to be one of the highest payed full backs in the league.

If he show’s that consistency, then he’d certainly be worth the money right?

I think so, as long as he isn’t looking to make $2.5 million per year like a Mike Tolbert of the Carolina Panthers. Tolbert is more of a runner and not so much a “dirty work” player. Dorsey should be able get Sherman signed to a reasonable deal and he looks to be worth every penny.

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