Man, what’s up with the Los Angeles Rams getting all these former Steelers and turning them around to shine in a new uniform?
We’ve written extensively about former Steeler LG Kevin Dotson and the strong season he is enjoying out on the West Coast after getting traded to the Rams after the preseason ended, being ranked as one of the best offensive linemen in the league by Pro Football Focus. Well, it doesn’t stop with Dotson regarding former Steelers playing well for the Rams as CB Ahkello Witherspoon is currently playing the best football of his professional career as well.
Witherspoon was released by the Steelers on May 17 and then signed with the Rams on June 29, helping fill a need at cornerback after the Rams shipped CB Jalen Ramsey to Miami. Since arriving in Los Angeles, Witherspoon has played well, according to the stats. He has started all six games and has allowed only 10 completions on 30 targets (33.3%) for 131 yards and zero touchdowns while picking off two passes and breaking up another four. He has allowed only 4.4 yards per target and a passer rating when targeted of 20.3, according to Pro Football Reference.
Witherspoon has stepped into the Rams’ CB1 role and done well in that capacity. Taking his occasional lumps here and there from some alpha wide receivers, he is, for the most part, playing his best football, especially compared to when he was in Pittsburgh. We saw signs of this play from Witherspoon in 2021 after he was introduced to the lineup, but that quickly faded in 2022. He allowed 248 yards on a 75.9% completion rate with four TDs allowed in coverage last season before going down with a hamstring injury that landed him on IR.
Witherspoon’s tenure in Pittsburgh didn’t end pretty, but through the first third of the 2023 season, it appears that he’s turning things around. That should create an interesting matchup between the seventh-year veteran and WR George Pickens as Pickens is the type of wide receiver Witherspoon is built to guard. Pickens is a tall, physical presence on the outside who excels in contested-catch situations while Witherspoon has the height, length, and speed to defend those receivers, minimizing the open windows thanks to his frame. Pickens and Witherspoon had their battles in training camp last year, but the bullets will be live Sunday with the two being on opposite sidelines.
Witherspoon has allowed a couple of deep completions this season, displaying some of the tendencies that got him into trouble back in Pittsburgh, like positioning to contest the catch as well as a lack of quick change of direction. The Rams have gotten beat down the field on a couple of occasions when playing straight-up man coverage this season, suggesting that the Steelers “should live in their fears” amid Witherspoon’s strong start to the year and test him with Pickens down the field.
