49ers: Power ranking San Francisco's top 30 players of 2018

San Francisco 49ers: Power ranking the top 30 players of 2018

By Aaron Tan | Jan 4, 2019

GREEN BAY, WI - OCTOBER 15: George Kittle #85, Matt Breida #22 and Kendrick Bourne #84 of the San Francisco 49ers celebrate after scoring a touchdown in the first quarter against the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field on October 15, 2018 in Green Bay, Wisconsin. (Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images) /

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TAMPA, FL – NOVEMBER 25: Wide receiver Mike Evans #13 of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers makes the first down catch as cornerback Ahkello Witherspoon #23 of the San Francisco 49ers gets charged with pass interference in the fourth quarter of the game at Raymond James Stadium on November 25, 2018 in Tampa, Florida. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers defeated the San Francisco 49ers 27-9. (Photo by Will Vragovic/Getty Images) /

. . Cornerback Ahkello Witherspoon. 20. team. 42.

Under the tutelage of newly-acquired cornerback Richard Sherman and coming off of a most impressive rookie year, Ahkello Witherspoon was a player we all expected to take a big step forward this season. However, the honeymoon did not last long for the second-year cornerback, as teams constantly picked on him in the first half of the season.

It was a very disappointing first half of the season for Witherspoon, but he bounced back in a big way at a certain point. He started resembling the lockdown cornerback that he was in his rookie year, and played very good coverage before suffering a knee injury in Week 15 and heading off to injured reserve.

Do not lose hope in Witherspoon. He is still developing and could still be a long-term starter for the team.