San Francisco 49ers: Top 3 free agent targets still available
By Justin Fried
2. Morris Claiborne, Cornerback
Apart from their safety depth chart, the 49ers still remain unproven at the cornerback position as well. And despite the cries to address secondary — particularly in the draft — the 49ers wholly ignored both positions for the most part and decided to roll with what they already had.
Veteran Richard Sherman will return and serve as the team’s top cornerback but the remainder of the depth chart remains a major question mark. 24-year-old Ahkello Witherspoon is expected to be the starter on the boundary opposite Sherman but that’s far from a sure plan.
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Witherspoon struggled mightily last season in a starting role scoring a very poor 44.9 Pro Football Focus grade ranking him as the No. 122 cornerback in the NFL. The team signed former Pro Bowler Jason Verrett in the offseason and while the potential is definitely there, it’s hard to count on him given his injury history.
Fortunately, a starting-caliber cornerback still remains unsigned.
Former New York Jets corner Morris Claiborne is still available despite putting together two solid seasons with the Jets over the past two years. While he struggled as a No. 1 option in 2017, he performed admirably as a No. 2 corner last season and it’s safe to say that he would be a better option short term than Witherspoon.
Claiborne is far from an All-Pro, but he’s far and away the best option on the open market and he would give the 49ers good depth with the potential to start from Week 1.