The San Francisco 49ers have seen significant turnover over the past two years. Charvarius Ward was one of the first to go after the Niners’ overtime loss to the Chiefs in Super Bowl LVIII but several have followed this season including Deebo Samuel, Aaron Banks, Jordan Mason, Javon Hargrave and Javon Kinlaw.
But while the 49ers have seen players leave from their most recent Super Bowl run, others from their 2019 run have also come and gone. One of those players has had a reunion tour with an NFC West rival and signed up for another year in the division on Wednesday afternoon.
Former 49ers CB Ahkello Witherspoon Re-Signs With Rams
According to Fox Sports’s Jordan Schultz, the Rams have agreed with former 49ers defensive back Ahkello Witherspoon to a one-year deal. Downtown Rams host Jake Ellenbogen adds that the contract is worth up to $3.2 million in incentives which include playing time, making the playoffs and making the Super Bowl.
Witherspoon has played with three different teams during his career which began with as a third-round pick by the 49ers in 2017. The Colorado product intercepted four passes in 47 games and became a starter during the team’s Super Bowl run in 2019 but fell out of favor in 2020 before signing with the Seattle Seahawks in 2021.
The first NFC West tour didn’t last long as Witherspoon was traded to the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2021, but the soon-to-be 30-year-old developed a knack for takeaways since leaving San Francisco. He’s recorded eight interceptions in his past 43 games but he brings an all or nothing element to a team’s secondary.
Witherspoon posted a career-high 80.9 coverage grade with the Niners in 2020 and followed it up with a 79.7 coverage grade in his first season with the Steelers. But he logged a 42.8 coverage grade in 2022 while playing just 248 snaps due to a hamstring injury that landed him on injured reserve and modest coverage grades of 60.0 and 62.6 in his two seasons in Los Angeles. While he made six pass breakups and an interception, he also allowed 36 catches for 435 yards and two touchdowns on 52 targets last season, making him available for a cheap price.
The 49ers are currently rolling with a new secondary which has free agent pickup Tre Brown and 2024 second-round pick Renardo Green currently listed as starters. But at least there will be one familiar face elsewhere as San Francisco tries to climb back to the top of the division in 2025.