San Francisco 49ers: Who is cornerback Keith Reaser?
By Peter Panacy
Niner Noise’s 2017 “Who Is?” series on San Francisco 49ers players takes a look at veteran cornerback Keith Reaser, his surprising uptrend and chances to make the roster this season.
At some point in the middle of the 2016 season, San Francisco 49ers cornerback Keith Reaser appeared poised to be yet another one of those failed Trent Baalke “All-ACL” experiments that never panned out at the NFL level.
Reaser, selected by the former general manager in Round 5 of the 2014 NFL Draft, redshirted his rookie campaign.
Yet his 2015 and 2016 seasons weren’t exactly noteworthy:
Provided by Pro-Football-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 6/22/2017.
Last season, Reaser managed to see 351 snaps — third most on the Niners at the position — and posted a 63.3 overall grade, per Pro Football Focus, in this semi-limited action.
After the Niners released veteran corner Tramaine Brock earlier this offseason, following his arrest for an alleged domestic violence incident, Reaser had the chance to climb the depth chart and even compete for the No. 2 cornerback spot behind presumed No. 1 starter, Rashard Robinson.
And it seems to be a situation where Reaser might finally turn a page.
So let’s break down how far Reaser could climb the depth chart, what will propel him into a starting role and what could hold him back in this pre-2017 player breakdown.
San Francisco 49ers
Why He’ll Improve
With two full seasons under his belt, Reaser should have the necessary experience to understand pro-level coverages and opposing offenses. The learning curve should be over, relatively speaking.
The Niners drafted former Colorado corner Ahkello Witherspoon in Round 3 of the draft, although he may not be ready to start right away. Instead, the 49ers have largely featured both Reaser and Dontae Johnson with the first-team unit for much of offseason workouts so far.
And Reaser is easily winning this competition, according to Grant Cohn of the Santa Rosa Press Democrat:
"Johnson split time with Keith Reaser on the No. 1 defense – those two are competing for one job. And Johnson is losing. Today, he gave up a long catch over the middle to DeAndre Carter, a longshot to make the final roster. Johnson has everything the 49ers are looking for in a cornerback – he’s tall and he’s fast. He just isn’t good. …Reaser made the best play of the afternoon when he broke up a long pass to DeAndre Smelter who was running a deep comeback route along the sideline. Reaser has improved from last season – he’s much more confident and aggressive."
In a nutshell, it appears as if Reaser is finally “getting it” and is able to make the notable contributions putting him into an excellent position to start in Week 1.
Why He’ll Regress
It’s hard to get over NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein’s 2014 draft profile on Reaser, stating the former Florida Atlantic defensive back was likely destined to be a Round 7 or undrafted free-agent pickup that year.
True, Reaser’s draft stock took a major hit, thanks to his ACL injury. But it’s safe to say Baalke reached back in 2014.
And there wasn’t anything standing out about Reaser’s collegiate game to suggest he could rise to be a noteworthy, playmaking cornerback at the NFL level either. He’s not a ballhawking defensive back by any means, and his overall lack of production thus far could indicate his promising OTA efforts are little more than an anomaly.
The 49ers are also switching to a new defense under coordinator Robert Saleh. He’ll implement a lot of Cover 3 schemes, which places cornerbacks in plenty of one-on-one coverage.
We’ve yet to see Reaser in true shutdown situations, and there’s always the possibility he struggles in this kind of role.
What to Expect in 2017
Witherspoon is clearly the corner the Niners would like to have starting opposite Robinson.
The likelihood is the rookie won’t start right away, leaving the No. 2 job up for grabs between Reaser and Johnson.
With Johnson’s apparent struggles during OTAs, all signs are pointing to Reaser winning this competition between now and Week 1. Assuming this trend continues, Reaser will wind up being a starter at the beginning of 2017.
It’s a job he could potentially hold onto for the majority — if not all — of the upcoming season.
He’ll be an unrestricted free agent after this year too, so this season is, essentially, a prove-it year for the 6-foot-0 cornerback. Not only is he trying to prove himself to San Francisco’s new regime, but Reaser is also opening up the possibility of signing a more lucrative deal a little less than a year from now.
Next: Way-too-early look at the 49ers' 2018 salary cap situation
A strong campaign this upcoming season would do wonders for Reaser’s career.