Niner Noise
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49ers training camp: Re-projecting cornerback depth chart

By Peter Panacy

SANTA CLARA, CA - MAY 23: Dontae Johnson #36 of the San Francisco 49ers participates in drills during 49ers Rookie Minicamp on May 23, 2014 in Santa Clara, California. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)
SANTA CLARA, CA - MAY 23: Dontae Johnson #36 of the San Francisco 49ers participates in drills during 49ers Rookie Minicamp on May 23, 2014 in Santa Clara, California. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images) /
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CHICAGO, IL – DECEMBER 04: Dontae Johnson #36 of the San Francisco 49ers runs with the football that was blocked on the Chicago Bears punt return in the second quarter at Soldier Field on December 4, 2016 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images)
CHICAGO, IL – DECEMBER 04: Dontae Johnson #36 of the San Francisco 49ers runs with the football that was blocked on the Chicago Bears punt return in the second quarter at Soldier Field on December 4, 2016 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images) /

No. 2: Dontae Johnson

During OTAs earlier this offseason, the Santa Rosa Press Democrat’s Grant Cohn reported Keith Reaser, not Dontae Johnson, was separating himself from the competition for San Francisco’s No. 2 corner spot.

These two are the primary options for the team’s other starting job at this position. Rookie cornerback Ahkello Witherspoon won’t be ready to start right away, so this is an important competition, to say the least.

Even if Reaser was the early favorite, Johnson appears to be turning things on as of late.

In this 1-on-1 drill (h/t Jerod Brown of Niners Wire), Johnson shuts down wide receiver Marquise Goodwin, who had been tearing through San Francisco defensive backs all training camp:

“Every practice is a game to me,” Johnson said, via NBC Sports Bay Area’s Mindi Bach. “Every play is just as important as the play that happened or the next play. Once that play is gone and it happens, it’s over with. I’m going to go on to the next play.”

The 6-foot-2 fourth-year veteran might actually be turning a page heading into this season, and these camp developments push him into a starting role in 2017.