Seahawks’ Richard Sherman shuts out 49ers’ Torrey Smith

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Submitted for debate and discussion: Richard Sherman is the greatest villain in the history of the 49ers.

Has any one opponent ever been more destructive?

Jed York and his family don’t own the 49ers. Sherman does, and he subleases them to Jed and kin.

On Thursday, the Seahawks’ cornerback was instrumental in crushing the 49ers’ soul once again. He might not be having his best season, and the Seattle pass defense is struggling, but Sherman threw a wet blanket on the 49ers’ top deep threat, Torrey Smith.

Smith did get away once: after the game, when he sped out of the locker room without waiting for the media.

Four days after busting out with a 74-yard touchdown reception from Colin Kaepernick, Smith was shut out cold. Kaepernick didn’t throw him a pass until the fourth quarter, and when he did, Smith dropped it.

Last time the Seahawks beat the 49ers at Levi’s Stadium — Thanksgiving night — Sherman celebrated by digging into a turkey leg on the 49ers’ logo. Most memorably, Sherman marked his team’s victory over the 49ers in the January 2014 NFC Championship Game by berating Michael Crabtree on national TV.

This time, Sherman was much less theatrical. Maybe after he and his pals coughed up four fourth-quarter leads in their four losses, like a cat struggling with hairballs, he has found some humility. Maybe now he considers the 49ers so broken that taunting them is beneath his dignity.

Sherman showed this much Thursday: He’s no Shareece Wright. The 49ers cut Wright two weeks ago, he was picked up by the Ravens, and Kaepernick torched him for two TDs on Sunday, including the long pass to Smith.

Sherman and the Seahawks are 6-1 against the 49ers in the Kaepernick Era, and if one person is most responsible for the decline of the quarterback and the team, it’s Sherman. He kills ’em. If Kaepernick is selling headphones in a booth at the mall next year, put the blame on Sherman.

Richard Sherman #25 of the Seattle Seahawks reacts to a play against the San Francisco 49ers during their NFL game at Levi's Stadium on October 22, 2015 in Santa Clara, California.

Richard Sherman #25 of the Seattle Seahawks reacts to a play against the San Francisco 49ers during their NFL game at Levi's Stadium on October 22, 2015 in Santa Clara, California. Photo: Ezra Shaw, Getty Images Photo: Ezra Shaw, Getty Images Image 1 of / 49 Caption Close Seahawks’ Richard Sherman shuts out 49ers’ Torrey Smith 1 / 49 Back to Gallery

In those seven games, the 49ers scored an average of 9.3 points, and Kaepernick has been sacked 24 times, at least partly because his receivers can’t get open against Sherman.

Kaepernick, typically terse after the game, was asked if Sherman had dogged Smith the whole game.

“Yeah,” Kaepernick said. “He was following Torrey. Locking him man-for-man. They still played zone coverages, just putting (Sherman) over the top on Torrey.”

Make it simple. Blame Sherman.