Ahkello Witherspoon had a rough game Saturday against the Vikings. Minnesota’s only touchdown of the game came in their second series when Witherspoon gave up a pair of third-down catches, including a 41-yard touchdown to wide receiver Stefon Diggs. That 41-yard play accounted for nearly 30 percent of the Vikings’ total yards for the game.
Witherspoon was benched the next series in favor of second-year cornerback Emmanuel Moseley. It was the second time in as many games Witherspoon exited for the former undrafted free agent.
Witherspoon’s reaction to getting benched speaks volumes about the culture the 49ers have cultivated over the three years of head coach Kyle Shanahan and general manager John Lynch’s tenure.
Instead of checking out of the game or sulking on the bench, Witherspoon tracked down the special teams coach to try and contribute in other ways according to Shanahan.
“Guys are helping out every way they can,” Shanahan said. “I mean … even Ahkello. For Ahkello to get replaced by Emmanuel early in that game, he handled it great. He went right up to (special teams coordinator Richard) Hightower, which Hightower told me yesterday, went up to him and was like ‘Hey, coach pulled me they’re going with E-Man, but I’m good. Make sure you give me all E-Man’s reps, everything he has on special teams. I want to do whatever I can to help. He needs his energy. You put me in on special teams.'”
Witherspoon played seven special teams snaps, which was his first special teams action since Week 11. Moseley played 10, his fewest since Week 15 when he started for the injured Richard Sherman.
Shanahan declined to say who would start at corner against Green Bay in the NFC championship, although it’s hard to imagine he goes any direction other than Moseley.
The fact he can navigate it without having to juggle egos and affect the locker room is a significant advantage for the 49ers though. They can worry about putting the best 11 players on the field without impacting team chemistry going into the biggest game of the year.
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