Seattle Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman gave Tom Brady a mouthful as he was walking off the field following his team's 24-23 victory over the Patriots on Sunday and later said the Patriots had a "gimmick offense" that his team solved in the second half.
"Any time you run a gimmick offense, you're a little bit afraid -- you're not sound in what you're doing in your base stuff," he said, according to Yahoo! Sports. "You're running this hurry-up stuff, and there's a reason it's not effective, because there are great defenses out there who will stuff it. We figured out early in the game what the calls were, what they were doing, and what the adjustments were. We started executing better, and that's why they got only six points in the second half."
The Patriots were successful with a hurry-up attack against the Denver Broncos a week before, but according to statistics compiled by ESPNBoston.com, they ran the hurry-up on only about 25 percent of their offensive snaps Sunday in Seattle.
Sherman, who intercepted Brady in the third quarter, said he was jawing with the Patriots' quarterback during the game.
"I kept saying I'm going to get that next time," he said, according to the Tacoma News Tribune. "Every TV timeout, I went up and said it right to (Brady): 'Please keep trying me. I'm going to take it from you.' That was when they were winning. He just gave me that look and said, 'Oh, I'll see you after the game.' Well, I made sure I saw him after the game."
The second-year cornerback did approach Brady after the game, tweeting a photo of himself yelling at the quarterback as he was walking off the field.
"Me and (safety Earl Thomas) walked up to him and said, 'We're greater than you. We're better than you. You're just a man -- we're a team,' " Sherman told the News Tribune. "That's the Brady Bunch; this is a defense. We've got 11 players out there to play great ball, and we're never going to let one man beat us. It's not just about one man. If they've got 11 players out there on offense, then they're one hell of a team."
Thomas also intercepted Brady on Sunday, picking off a pass in the end zone that ended a drive that could have put the Patriots up by 17 points.
Brady had two interceptions on the game, but Sherman thought that number should have been higher.
"They're going to say, 'What's wrong? He threw two picks.' Well, he should have thrown five picks," Sherman said, according to the News Tribune. "If Earl catches every one, then it's a long day for him. People don't understand. We've got great players out here. We've got great players in the Pacific Northwest. The Seattle Seahawks have a lot of talent. People, they don't look at the film. They don't analyze anything. That's why these analysts and commentators need to shut their mouth."
Besides the interception, Sherman was credited with three tackles and three passes defensed. Thomas had five tackles (two solo) and two passes defensed. The Seahawks came into the game allowing 192 passing yards per game, fourth-best in the NFL. Brady surpassed that average in the first half, throwing for 216 yards on 21-for-30 passing, including two touchdowns. In the second half, he was 15-for-28 for 179 yards and two interceptions. For the game, he threw a career-high 58 passes.
"This is a team that really forces you to throw the ball, based on the schemes that they play," Brady said. "But whatever we do we have to do it effectively and efficiently, whether it's running it or throwing it. We had some real good run plays in there. We had some good pass plays in there. I just thought that there was more in the running game and more in the passing game that we just didn't have. I thought that's why you come up one point short."
Sherman seemed to take offense to a comment made by Brady last week, when he said he hoped to silence the crowd at CenturyLink Field, noted as one of the loudest stadiums in the NFL.
After the game, Sherman tweeted a photo of Brady looking dejected with the caption, "Brady sure looks like a man who turned the 12thMan against us."
Sherman later tweeted the photo of himself shouting at Brady along with this text: "He told me and earl to see him after the game when they win..... I found him after...."
A short time later, he sent one last tweet rubbing it in after apparently hearing from some irate New Englanders: "Patriots fans mad lol... Talking bout Super Bowl rings.... What have u done lately? Oh ur 3-3 lol".
For his part, Brady took the high road on Monday in a radio appearance with Jim Gray on Dial Global Sports.
Sherman is "a very good player and I have a lot of respect for that defense and certainly that secondary," Brady said. "They play very well together. My dad taught me at a young age to play with class and respect and give my opponents respect, and certainly I have a lot of respect for the Seahawks."
Asked about Sherman's comments Monday, Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels said he doesn't pay attention to the trash talk.
"They have a good defense, they really do. They have one of the top defenses in the league. I give them a lot of credit," he said. "They play a lot of players in there, and they play the run well, and they defend the pass well. They don't give up a lot of big plays. They played better than we did yesterday."
The Patriots next face the New York Jets who are coming off a 35-9 rout of the Indianapolis Colts and coach Rex Ryan didn't pass up an opportunity to call out the Pats.
"I want them to know -- and they know -- I think we're going to beat them," Ryan said, explaining his motivation for the tough talk. "I don't buy into all that other stuff. Look, I recognize they're a great football team and Belichick's a great coach. I've never once said he wasn't, OK, but we're not going to back down or concede anything."
ESPNBoston.com's Mike Rodak contributed to this report.