SANTA CLARA -- Cornerback Ahkello Witherspoon was completely unchallenged for a starting role heading into last season.
But after an up-and-down second year in the NFL, Witherspoon had competition this offseason after the 49ers signed veteran Jason Verrett to a one-year contract. Witherspoon believes the arrival of a talented veteran helped him take his game to another level this summer. Witherspoon said he worked on one area to improve every day, and feels it all came together to enable him to be a more well-rounded player.
“It brought competition into the building,” Witherspoon said of Verrett. “I think with competition, you’re either going to rise or fall. If you’re given the starting job, you’re competing against yourself and trying to get better. Now, you have actual tangible person who’s trying to take your job.
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“It’s not very gray. It’s black and white, and I like operating like that. I don’t like the in-between or trying to manufacture anything. I think he’s a helluva player. And at the same time, I think I’m a helluva player. And it improves that mindset. You got to go out and compete every day.”
Witherspoon and Verrett were in daily competition until Aug. 7, when Verrett went down with an ankle injury. Verrett returned to practice on Monday and could be available when the 49ers open the regular season on Sunday at the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
But there is little doubt that Witherspoon showed enough during the course of training camp to enter the season as the starter opposite of Richard Sherman.
“I’m excited to go out and put it on tape on a real Sunday,” Witherspoon said. “I’m really for that feeling again.”
San Francisco 49ers
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Witherspoon probably will not have to wait too long to get challenged. He will see a lot of Buccaneers wide receiver Mike Evans, who has registered 1,000-yard seasons in each of his five years in the NFL.
Evans (6-foot-5, 231 pounds) had 86 receptions for 1,524 yards and eight touchdowns last season. He had six catches for 116 yards in Tampa Bay’s 27-9 victory over the 49ers in Week 12.
“With a bigger-bodied guy like that, you just have to put the ball in his area and he has that go-get-it mentality,” Witherspoon said. “That’s something that makes him special. He’s kind of like that DeAndre Hopkins style, where he’s not going to get a step on you, but even if you’re in perfect coverage he can still make a play. That’s where I see his biggest plays come.”
Witherspoon (6-2, 195) also has good size, but one area in which he must improve is his physicality. He knows he will be faced with one of his bigger tests of the season in Week 1.
Said Witherspoon: “That’s the key -- just not being afraid of a bigger guy, and going up and challenging him early and often.”