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The Pittsburgh Steelers got some much-needed help in their defensive secondary on Friday by trading for Seattle Seahawks cornerback Ahkello Witherspoon.
NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported the news of Witherspoon being traded from Seattle to Pittsburgh for a 2023 fifth-round pick, and Michael-Shawn Duger of The Athletic provided further context on why the Seahawks made the move:
This continues an eventful offseason for Seattle, which has featured everything from Russell Wilson in jeopardy of being traded to a makeover in the defensive backfield.
Although the Seahawks recently signed star safety Jamal Adams to a massive contract extension, previous CB1 Shaquill Griffin walked in free agency to the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Interestingly enough, Seattle just traded for another Jags corner in Sidney Jones mere days ago. Witherspoon was seen as a bargain on the open market on a cheap one-year deal, but as Dugar mentioned, D.J. Reed beat him out for a starting spot.
Witherspoon played excellent football for the San Francisco 49ers in 2020, ranking sixth in Pro Football Focus’ grades among all cornerbacks. Bear in mind, that was on an injury-plagued 49ers defense that didn’t have its full complement of stars, including elite defensive lineman Nick Bosa.
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So, what looked like a savvy move by Seattle to steal Witherspoon from the NFC West rival 49ers turned out to be a footnote — and it actually is a great break for Pittsburgh.
With the recent news that veteran Joe Haden will test free agency in 2022, combined with the release of Steven Nelson earlier in the offseason, the Steelers need help at the cornerback spot now and into the future.
Having Witherspoon on a one-year trial run seems like a great way to convince him that Pittsburgh can be his long-term home, given its history of building successful defenses and the incentive for the 26-year-old to make the most of his new opportunity.
Minkah Fitzpatrick is a rock at safety, but the Steelers didn’t have many viable corners outside of Haden. Their already-elite defense all of a sudden becomes much more formidable with someone like Witherspoon in the fold — provided he meets expectations more than he did in his brief Seattle stint.
Related: 2022 NFL Power Rankings – Outlook for all 32 teams entering summer