Strong play down stretch makes Steelers’ decision tougher for free agent Ahkello Witherspoon

Unless he re-signs with the Pittsburgh Steelers, it’s possible Ahkello Witherspoon by the end of March will join a fourth NFL team over a 13-month span.

The five-year NFL veteran cornerback was asked last month about his interest in putting down some roots with the Steelers.

“I think I enjoyed my time here,” Witherspoon said. “The biggest thing was just the familiarity of the defense, just being able to understand it in those weeks that I wasn’t playing. Then just the environment, and the simplicity and approach to the game. Minimizing the other team’s targets, winning those important moments. Those are all simple components of the game that I understand, and I was able to go out and apply it.”

Ahkello Witherspoon on why he fit in so well with the Steelers defense by the end of the season pic.twitter.com/qVTgIHD1tM

— Chris Adamski (@C_AdamskiTrib) January 20, 2022

From a personal perspective, Witherspoon’s 2021 was highlighted by the birth of a daughter. On the football side, it’s fair to say it was quite the ride.

It began Jan. 3, when he played everydefensive snap of the final game of his four-year tenure with the San Francisco 49ers. Two-and-a-half months later, Witherspoon joined the Seattle Seahawks on a one-year, $4 million contract.

By the end of training camp, the fit wasn’t working as anticipated. Seattle dealt him to the Steelers on Sept. 3 for a fifth-round pick.

For the next 2 ½ months, the situation in Pittsburgh wasn’t much better. Witherspoon was inactive eight of first nine games. During the one game he did appear — Sept. 19 against the Las Vegas Raiders — among the four snaps Witherspoon played was a 61-yard touchdown pass in which Witherspoon was the closest defender.

James Pierre and Justin Layne were playing ahead of Witherspoon, even through injury absences to cornerbacks Joe Haden and Cameron Sutton.

By the midway point of the season, the Witherspoon acquisition was looking like an even bigger bust than the previous two underwhelming trades the Steelers made during training camp for a veteran cornerback: Brandon Boykin (2015) and Justin Gilbert (2016).

A funny thing happened, though, by way of a foot injury to Haden. Pierre had disappointed, so the Steelers had little to lose by turning to Witherspoon — and Witherspoon played well enough that within three weeks he was playing almost every snap.

Playing time? Free-agent market value? An adjustment to new bosses or teammates, or even an unexpected sudden move across the country?

All secondary to Ahkello Witherspoon. https://t.co/SLWFJrpbJ4

— Tribune-ReviewSports (@TribSports) January 16, 2022

“He’s a guy that prides himself on being eligible and being prepared, a guy that week in and week out did a great job as anybody,” Sutton said, “especially for a guy who (initially) maybe didn’t get the role he wanted, but he played really good ball for us.”

Witherspoon had three interceptions over the final six games — more than any other Steelers player had all season. His eight passes defended in that time also were more than any other Steelers DB during the season.

Per Pro Football Focus, from Week 13 on, no cornerback had a better passer rating against (22.3) than Witherspoon.

What looked like an awful fit in October turned into a godsend for the Steelers as they made their run to the playoffs in December.

Witherspoon took a lesson from that as he approaches free agency.

“The biggest thing is just kind of letting stuff unfold and not getting caught up in an idea of how I want it to look or how I want it to go,” he said.

Witherspoon is among four Steelers defensive backs who are free agents, and he said the experience with Seattle last year will help guide him in the coming weeks leading to the March 16 opening of free agency.

“I know that stressing or wondering where you’re going to be, you might not even be there come the start of the season,” he said. “That’s my approach in terms of stepping back or putting too much in and pretend that I know everything, because I thought I did last year and I was extremely wrong.

“For me, just going where you’re wanted is an absolute must. That was Seattle last year and then that changed. I’m very comfortable and prepared to play football anywhere, really.”

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