Seattle Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman has apologized a day after targeting the play of San Francisco 49ers receiver Michael Crabtree with several harsh rebukes after Sunday night’s NFC Championship win.

Sherman’s deflection of a pass intended for Crabtree in the end zone during the closing minute, which bounced into the grasp of Seahawks linebacker Malcolm Smith, sealed the 23-17 win over the visiting 49ers to earn Seattle a matchup with the Denver Broncos in the Super Bowl.

“I apologize for attacking an individual and taking the attention away from the fantastic game by my teammates … That was not my intent,” Sherman said Monday in a text message to ESPN’s Ed Werder.

Sherman also addressed his postgame comments in an interview Monday with ESPN Radio on the “SVP and Russillo” show.

“Obviously I could have worded things better and could obviously have had a better reaction and done things differently,” he said during the interview. “But it is what it is now, and people’s reactions are what they are.”

Sherman was rarely targeted by San Francisco, with most of the throws going toward Sherman’s teammate Byron Maxwell. But 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick challenged the All-Pro with 22 seconds left to play.

Sherman stayed with Crabtree, leaped and batted the ball into the air with his left hand. That allowed Smith to run underneath and make the interception that clinched the victory. It was San Francisco’s third turnover in the fourth quarter.

“I knew if I tipped it high enough, someone would get there,” Sherman said.

After the interception, Sherman ran over to Crabtree and gave him a pat on the backside then appeared to extend his arm for a handshake. Instead, Sherman got shoved in the face before picking up a personal foul as his celebration continued.

“I was making sure everyone knew Crabtree was a mediocre receiver,” Sherman said in his postgame news conference. “And when you try the best corner in the game with a mediocre receiver, that’s what happens. I appreciate that he knows that now. There has been a lot of talk from him running his mouth about me.”

Sherman, 25, led the league with eight interceptions this season. The two-time Pro Bowler has 20 career interceptions in three seasons, all with Seattle.

Sherman attempted to explain his mindset and provide context for his postgame tirade in a column posted Monday morning on mmqb.com. Sherman also responded to widespread criticism, some of which he alleged was racist in nature, that he has received since the game.

“To those who would call me a thug or worse because I show passion on a football field — don’t judge a person’s character by what they do between the lines,” Sherman wrote in the column posted on mmqb.com. “Judge a man by what he does off the field, what he does for his community, what he does for his family.

“But people find it easy to take shots on Twitter, and to use racial slurs and bullying language far worse than what you’ll see from me. It’s sad and somewhat unbelievable to me that the world is still this way, but it is. I can handle it.”

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SOURCE: ESPN