Tag: Ahkello Witherspoon

Ahkello Witherspoon a team player after getting benched vs. Vikings

Ahkello Witherspoon looked to help 49ers in other ways after getting benched vs. the Vikings.

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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Ahkello Witherspoon says he’s starting Saturday vs. Vikings

The 49ers got one of their big defensive questions answered Wednesday.

The 49ers defense apparently has an answer to their biggest non-injury question going into the playoffs.

Cornerback Ahkello Witherspoon on Wednesday told reporters he’ll be starting across from Richard Sherman in the divisional round Saturday against the Vikings.

Witherspoon’s performance declined dramatically over the final three weeks of the season, and culminated in the third-year corner getting benched in favor of Emmanuel Moseley for the final drive against the Seahawks in Week 17. Moseley recorded a pass breakup against DK Metcalf to knock down what would’ve been the go-ahead touchdown.

Witherspoon declined to elaborate on why he was benched against Seattle.

Moseley,  an undrafted second-year corner, started nine games early in the year while Witherspoon dealt with a foot strain. He played well in Witherspoon’s stead, but went back to the bench once Witherspoon was healthy.

It’ll be interesting to see how much leeway Witherspoon gets in the 49ers’ playoff game. Defensive coordinator Robert Saleh came to the young cornerback’s defense and said he didn’t play poorly against Seattle.

Witherspoon was having the best year of his career prior to the last few weeks, and his dip in production coincides with the decline of the 49ers’ pass rush. Dee Ford’s return should help immensely with that. Witherspoon will also get help with Jaquiski Tartt’s entry back into the starting lineup at strong safety.

Given how important communication is in the 49ers’ secondary, having the more experienced Witherspoon in the lineup for the playoffs is probably the correct move. However, Minnesota won’t hesitate to target him with their dynamic receiving corps. If he struggles early, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see Moseley get some snaps.

Who was good, who was bad in the 49ers’ 34-31 win vs. Rams

The 49ers got some up-and-down performances in a back-and-forth game Saturday night.

The 49ers got a much-needed 34-31 victory over the Rams on Saturday night. It wasn’t perfect, but San Francisco made plays when they needed to at key points and pulled out the win to move to 12-3 and put themselves in position to win the division in Seattle the final week of the season.

Here’s who was good and who wasn’t Saturday night:

Good: Fourth quarter Jimmy Garoppolo

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The 49ers’ quarterback dominated the final 15 minutes Saturday night. In the final frame, he guided a touchdown drive and a drive that led to the game-winning field goal. His stats reflected his tremendous play as well. He went six-of-nine for 134 yards and a touchdown with no interceptions. Twice on the final drive of the game Garoppolo delivered completions on third-and-16 to keep the drive alive, including a 46-yard heave to Emmanuel Sanders to get the team in field goal range. Considering the duress he was under most of the night, his fourth quarter was extremely impressive.

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3 matchups that will decide 49ers-Falcons

The 49ers and Falcons’ game will come down to the winner of these three matchups.

The 49ers will look to move to 4-0 against the NFC South on Sunday against the Atlanta Falcons. With a win on Sunday, the 49ers will clinch a playoff spot for the first time since 2013. It could be tough with six players on the defensive side of the ball out due to injury.

Here are the six matchups to watch on Sunday:

DE Nick Bosa vs. LT Jake Matthews

This should be a one-sided matchup for the 49ers. Their defensive line, led by Bosa is third in the league with 45 sacks, only behind Pittsburgh and Carolina. The Falcons offensive line on the other hand have allowed 41 sacks with 16 coming in the last three weeks. While the 49ers will be down Dee Ford, they’ll still have Bosa, who’s capable of wrecking an offense by himself. The entire defensive line should have a huge day, but Bosa will be spearheading the effort against Matthews, who made his first Pro Bowl last season. If Matthews can slow down Bosa by himself, the Falcons have a chance to handle the rest of that unit. If Bosa goes off, it’ll be a long day for Matt Ryan.

Emmanuel Moseley/Ahkello Witherspoon vs. Julio Jones

The bad news is that the 49ers will be down both Richard Sherman and K’Waun Williams on Sunday against arguably the best receiver in the NFL. The good news is that Moseley and Witherspoon have both played well all season and should be fine without the usual depth. Jones is one of the best weapons in the league on the perimeter, and has 69 catches for 1,016 yards and four touchdowns this season. He’ll be a tough matchup for whoever guards him, and how well Moseley and Witherspoon do against him will dictate how effective the Falcons’ passing attack is.

Raheem Mostert vs. Falcons run defense

Mostert is expected to get a heavy workload Sunday based on how well he’s played in recent weeks. He’s proven to be a dual-threat option out of the backfield last week with 69 rushing yards and 40 receiving yards with a pair of touchdowns. The Falcons’ defense is not very good. They’re 26th in passing defense DVOA according to Football Outsiders. They’re 16th in run defense DVOA. Mostert has become a valuable weapon for the 49ers’ offense, and if Atlanta gives him the chance, he could have his third consecutive productive day.

49ers vs. Packers: 6 players to watch on defense

The 49ers defense as allowed 20-plus points in three consecutive games for the first time all season. 

The 49ers’ defense has allowed 20-plus points in three consecutive games for the first time all season. It won’t get any easier with Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers coming to town for their highly-anticipated Sunday night matchup. The defense will need to click in all facets of the game to stop Packers head coach Matt LaFleur’s offense.

Here are the six players that will be key in doing just that:

CB Richard Sherman

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Sherman was called for pass interference three times last week against the Cardinals. Sunday night he’ll be tasked in coverage plenty against wide receiver Davante Adams, who leads the Packers in targets despite missing four games. Sherman will need to be careful in coverage because the last thing the defense wants to do is give Rodgers free yards. Pass interference penalties against the Packers are especially damaging because Rodgers isn’t afraid to take deep shots.

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No tough decisions in 49ers inactives vs. Cardinals

The 49ers have so many injuries that they didn’t have any choices with their list of inactives.

The 49ers coaching staff didn’t have any tough decisions when it came to their seven inactive players Sunday.

Here’s the list officially submitted by the team prior to Sunday’s game:

OT Joe Staley
QB CJ Beathard
TE George Kittle
RB Matt Breida
K Robbie Gould
LB Azeez Al-Shaair
DT DJ Jones

Really the list was all but confirmed late Saturday morning when the 49ers announced Al-Shaair was downgraded to ‘out’ with a concussion. He joined Staley and Jones as the three players officially out. With Beathard a regular inactive as the third quarterback, there were only three inactive spots left.

Those three spots were the only question marks, and they were officially filled Sunday with Kittle, Breida and Gould – the three players the 49ers labeled ‘doubtful’ leading up to the game.

One silver lining is the absence of Ahkello Witherspoon’s name on the inactive list for the first time since Week 5. He sprained his foot in the Week 3 win over the Steelers and hasn’t played since. Witherspoon was supposed to be back Monday vs. Seattle, but had a setback and was forced to delay his return date.

 

Redemption time: 49ers defense needs better showing vs. Cardinals

Although the Seattle game is the only loss on the season, it may have been the defense’s best performance.

Although the Seattle game is the only loss of the season, it may have been the defense’s best performance. If it weren’t for the turnovers from the offense, the story would have been dominated by the 49ers’ defensive dominance.

Now they take on an Arizona team that gave them some fits and forced what may have been their worst performance just two weeks ago.

The defense will want to show they can hang against Kliff Kingsbury’s offense and rookie quarterback Kyler Murray. Here are the six players to watch on that side of the ball:

LB Fred Warner

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Warner impressed against Seattle with the best game of his career. He finished with 10 tackles, 2.0 sacks, a forced fumble, and a pass deflection, and was all over the field in general. The defense lost a leader in Kwon Alexander, but if Warner can continue his performance from Monday night, he can step into a new role as the heart of the defense.

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George Kittle officially inactive for 49ers vs. Seahawks

The 49ers won’t have their star tight end in their biggest game of the year.

The 49ers will officially be without their star tight end Monday night against the Seahawks. Tight end George Kittle has officially been ruled out after being given a ‘doubtful’ designation Saturday. He joins kicker Robbie Gould and cornerback Ahkello Witherspoon among the inactive starters for San Francisco.

Here’s the full list of inactives for the 49ers:

TE George Kittle
OL Justin Skule
RB Jeff Wilson Jr.
QB C.J. Beathard
DT Jullian Taylor
CB Ahkello Witherspoon
K Robbie Gould

The silver lining in this group is that it doesn’t include Joe Staley, Mike McGlinchey or Kyle Juszczyk. The two starting tackles and starting fullback were instrumental in the 49ers’ dominance on the ground early in the year.

Staley broke his fibula in Week 2, McGlinchey hurt his knee and needed arthroscopic surgery after Week 5, and Juszczyk sprained his MCL in Week 5.

Witherspoon was ‘100 percent healthy’ according to a report from NBC Sports’ Jennifer Lee Chan, but he’s still inactive after being limited in practice all week with foot and quad injuries. He sprained his foot in Week 3, then suffered a setback just as he was getting ready to return.

Gould getting ruled out isn’t a huge surprise. San Francisco braced for that by adding kicker Chase McLaughlin on Wednesday after Gould suffered a quad injury during Tuesday’s bonus practice.

San Francisco survived without their tackles and fullback on offense, now they have to devise a way to win without their most impactful player on that side of the ball.

Here are the Seahawks inactives:

49ers activate TE Garrett Celek, waive CB Dontae Johnson

The 49ers made a pair of tweaks to their roster just in time for Monday night’s game vs. the Seahawks.

The 49ers made a roster move ahead of their Monday night showdown with the Seahawks. They officially activated tight end Garrett Celek off the PUP list, and waived cornerback Dontae Johnson to make room on the roster.

This move suggests two things. First, tight end George Kittle, who was already doubtful with knee and ankle injuries, will probably not play now that Celek is activated. Johnson’s departure is also a good sign for cornerback Ahkello Witherspoon, who’s been out since Week 3 with a foot injury.

Celek has been on the PUP list since undergoing back surgery during the offseason. His three-week practice window was opened the week leading up to the Seahawks game. San Francisco only needed to only see a week of action from Celek before putting him on the 53-man roster. He’d worked well as the second tight end during head coach Kyle Shanahan’s first two seasons. Ross Dwelley holds that spot now, but having Celek will give the 49ers an additional body to try and adequately replace Kittle’s production.