With the Kansas City Chiefs getting set to play the San Francisco 49ers in the Super Bowl this Sunday, one Chiefs defensive back is paying respects to a 49ers defensive back.

Kansas City safety Tyrann Mathieu, who spent his early days with the Arizona Cardinals, is very familiar with San Francisco cornerback Richard Sherman and clearly has a whole lot of respect for the veteran:

“I think, I was so fortunate to play in the same division with Sherman and really Kam Chancellor, all those guys,” Mathieu said, according to Josh Schrock of NBC Sports Bay Area. “I used to marvel at some of the things that they do right? And it wasn’t really athletic things, right? It was more so the communication things and the mental part of the game, that I think he’s doing the same thing for San Francisco, right? He’s setting the tempo. He’s giving them the energy that they need, putting those guys in a certain mindset. You can tell he’s a clear-cut leader over there and he’s a guy I’ve always admired from a far.”

Mathieu spent his first five NFL seasons with the Cardinals when Sherman was a member of the Seattle Seahawks, so the two players had their fair share of NFC West clashes.

Sherman stayed in the division even after departing the Seahawks, but Mathieu has spent the last couple of years in the AFC, playing for the Houston Texans in 2018 before joining the Chiefs this season.

Mathieu and Sherman both had bounce-back years this season, with Mathieu earning a First-Team All-Pro selection and Sherman making it to the Pro Bowl.