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We have all heard the cliche, “anatomy of a winner”. But what truly exemplifies the enigma that is a champion. This persona, this illustrated understanding of what it means to be a victor is forever unclear, and eternally changing. While all it takes to be a champion is an engraving on a trophy and a ring on one’s finger, becoming a role-model in the digital age is decidedly more difficult.

Ray Lewis won two Super Bowls in his career, yet his off the field persona was forever marred by his refusal to testify in a murder case. Tom Brady, Bill Belichick and the New England Patriots won three championships in four years; but their legacy was tarnished when reports surfaced that the Patriots were using spy cameras to film opposing teams’ practices. But according to Brady, his team “wins with graciousness”. Deion Sanders was one of the most explosively talented defensive backs to ever step on a football field, but many saw him as egotistical, brash, and rude. While on the field exploits are crucial to establishing a legacy, it is the time players spend in the limelight, off the field. that establishes lasting memories. Mike Tyson, Charles Barkley, Lance Armstrong, the list goes on and on; how will your favorite sporting-heros be remembered?

There are numerous viewpoints on how athletes should act, speak, think, talk, and most importantly be. The term champion does not define a single human or a set of teammates, but an identity that transcends all of these facets. A true victor wins the way he or she knows how, and this champion is unconcerned with the definitions of being the best, because he or she knows they are the best. The ultimate role model is unconcerned with these perceptions. This figure of solidarity in a world of secularity is about as rare as a winning record for the Buffalo Bills.

Thus we come to the finale of Sunday night’s NFC Championship game between the Seattle Seahawks and San Francisco 49ers. While Seattle held on to earn its first Super Bowl berth in years, the victory was marred by a post-game WWE villain-esque outpouring of emotion from a man that calls himself the best: Seattle’s Richard Sherman.

The leader of the Legion of Boom was targeted just twice in the NFC-finale, plays that resulted in what Shermancalled a “BS” holding call, and the tipped ball in the end zone that sealed San Francisco’s fate. While Sherman’s domination of Michael Crabtree has been documented on the field (Crabtree has been held without a touchdown in each of the team’s eight meetings in his career) Sunday’s conflagration of emotion was the epicenter of this growing feud between corner and receiver.

Neither player has a Super Bowl ring, and most analysts would concur that both men deserve to be on the list of top-20 at their respective positions; but only Sherman can make the claim that he is the best in his role. And while being named a top corner is certainly a resume-builder, the Seattle corner is still one victory away from what separates the good from the great.

This pedigree of a champion that many speak of could be found in Sherman. Emcee skills aside, he is a shining example of what is means to be at the top of his field. Despite owning a personality some would deem averse, Sherman led the league in interceptions, and was a virtual wrecking-ball reminiscent of a Miley Cyrus music-video on my ear-buds: downright destructive.

Sherman’s explosivity makes him a boon on the field, and an atrocity off of it. However,bequeathing bill-board material rivaling a scene from the former MTV show Yo Mama won’t help against “the best regular-season quarterback of all time”. Is there a greater contrast in all of sports? The man who eat, sleeps, breathes, and shows class in all situations against a man who uses the “choke” sign at opposing quarterbacks. Its a scenario that sports-writers dream of. A chance to weave an exaggerated web around a real-life event; and on Sunday those writers got their antagonist: Richard Sherman.

The protagonist in this upcoming epilogue to the 2013 season is the NFL’s white knight.The eldest of Archie Manning’s sons is a proven winner, with one Lombardi Trophy already illuminating the mantle-piece in the Manning-family den. But it is his tenderness and civility that makes him the gold-standard for what many call “the anatomy of a winner”. With only his on-field ability rivaling his personality as his best quality, Manning is the shining example of what it is to be a victory in the NFL, and Sherman would do well to learn a thing or two from a man who has been there before; the perfect role model.

Never have you heard Manning take a shot at the team he defeated after a hard-fought game. Rarely does he have anything but positive things to say about those who bested him. Heck, after breaking the NFL’s single-season touchdown record all Manning had to say was “its a temporary record, Tom(Brady) will probably break it next year”.

It is this rarely-matched level of passivity within the realm of competition that makes Manning such a glorious albatross, and an illuminate example of how NFL players should conduct themselves both on and off the field.

While it is the moments during the game that puts men into the memories of generations, it is the off the field behavior that creates role models; people who your children can learn from. Hopefully Sherman learns from this type of irrational, immature behavior. Yes, Sherman’s “justification” was clear and I do love what he had to say about the thrill of competition: 

But this “explanation” seemed like more of a back-pedal than a justification of errant behavior. Winners don’t need to gloat, Sherman’s play between the lines should stand out more than his classless behavior after a victory, but it is this farce of a post-game interview that will be Sherman’s legacy should Seattle fail to win a Super Bowl. At the end of the day what is more important: a flash in the pan game-winner, or a lasting legacy that sets examples for future generations to follow? Peyton Manning is that ultimate example, and his sights are set on Sherman’s Seahawks.