Things were not going well for the Green Bay Packers' secondary early in the 2009 season.
New coordinator Dom Capers had installed the 3-4 defense and some players didn't entirely trust the techniques they were being taught. It didn't help that first-year cornerbacks coach Joe Whitt Jr. was just 31 and younger than his two starters, Charles Woodson and Al Harris.
"We were so much of a press team and we went to a zone concept," Whitt said. "The techniques that Dom was teaching, they weren't buying them. They were running his defense but they weren't necessarily doing the techniques the way we talked about doing it."
Woodson smiled when asked about the feeling-out process with Whitt.
"It didn't take me long to understand that he knows football," Woodson said, "but it's a different story coming in and being your coach. I'm older than Joe, so that can be a sticky situation."
The tipping point was a frustrating loss to Tampa Bay in Week 8 in which the defense had no answer for rookie quarterback Josh Freeman and allowed 38 points for a second consecutive game.
"We sat down and had a talk," Whitt said. "I told them, 'I respect what you do and I know you're the best at what you do. But you've got to understand, I'm pretty good at what I do, too. If you trust and believe in me, I'm going to trust and believe in you and we're going to get this thing done.'
"I had to change, too. I can be an (expletive). I had to tone it down."
It was the first step toward building a secondary that has become an outstanding unit, one that played a huge role in helping the Packers reach Super Bowl XLV and could be on the verge of greatness.
"I think it's the best secondary in the league," Whitt said. "It's a group that over the next three or four years could potentially be very, very good."
The remaking of the Packers' secondary is a case study in how successful NFL teams operate. A lot of things had to go right. Scouting, personnel moves, coaching, communication and chemistry were involved.
In Whitt and safeties coach Darren Perry, another bright assistant, the Packers had two young, aggressive, strong-willed coaches willing to do whatever it took.
Whitt had coached corners at the University of Louisville, where he didn't get along with the safeties coach. He didn't want the same thing to happen in Green Bay but as it turned out there was no cause for concern.
"I truly, truly like Darren," Whitt said. "He's a friend of mine. So when he gets in that room, he can tell one of my guys to do something and I don't care what it is because I know we're on the same plane."
Gaining the trust of the players was one thing. Getting them to perform as a cohesive unit was quite another.
The group gave up 34 touchdown passes in 17 games in '09 and was equally bad in the red zone and in adversity situations (when the opponent started a drive on the Packers' side of the 50-yard line). The coaches knew they had a communication problem on their hands.
"Oh, absolutely, that was lacking last year," Perry said. "Sometimes guys are prideful and sometimes they're afraid to ask questions because they don't want you to know as coaches that they don't know."
Perry and Whitt had the cornerbacks and safeties watch film together, a practice that continues to this day. They wanted to be sure the terminology was consistent and that all the players were seeing and hearing the same thing.
"For me, it's the biggest difference in our team year one to year two," Capers said. "Our communication is much better."
Safety Charlie Peprah explained how improved communication led to greater trust and helped the defense play faster. He likened it to friends knowing each other so well they can finish each other's sentences.
"You just kind of have to know the man next to you," he said. "You have to be able to know what he's going to do without speaking to him. You can tell by his body language what he's about to do and where he's going and you can play off of that."
From a personnel standpoint, most of the pieces already were in place going into the 2010 season.
Woodson, a self-described "wild child" earlier in his career, had become a consummate professional and was the 2009 NFL defensive player of the year. Nick Collins was a Pro Bowl safety. Tramon Williams was on the verge of becoming an elite cover corner.
But with Harris still sidelined following knee surgery (and eventually released), who was going to play nickel back? Among the options was undrafted rookie Sam Shields, a gifted athlete with sub-4.3 speed who had played just one year at corner for Miami.
"He was lost," Whitt said. "I almost threw him out of a meeting in OTAs. At the beginning he didn't understand defensive football. He didn't know what Cover 2 was."
Whitt had his doubts, but he liked Shields' moxie. Because Whitt was dyslexic, he'd had to learn formations from flash cards. He thought it might be the fastest way for Shields to learn, too.
"I said, 'This is what we're going to do. This is how I used to study,' " Whitt said. "I drew a formation. I drew a call on there and then I had a motion. What's the check? The answer was on the back.
"I said, 'I don't care how many flash cards you need to do, but you do every defense that way.' I came in the very next day and he had a big stack of cards. When I saw that, I said, 'This kid is going to have a chance.' "
As training camp wound down, Whitt asked Woodson point-blank: Which player do you trust to play nickel?
"He said, 'I trust the young fella,' " Whitt said. "I needed to know that."
Still, just days before the season opener against Philadelphia, Shields was unsure of his status.
"He said, 'Coach, am I going to make the team?' " Whitt said. "I said, 'Sam, you are the nickel corner. Don't worry about making this team. Worry about covering DeSean Jackson running up the field.' "
Shields has become the biggest surprise on the Packers' roster and among the biggest in the NFL. He intercepted two passes in the NFC Championship Game, the second a game-saver in the final minute.
"He's going to have the world in his hands," Whitt said. "He is so talented. He is special. Now, he might get in the Super Bowl and give up three touchdowns. I don't know. But that's not going to take away from him being special. His ability is so high there is no ceiling."
Williams has become a shut-down corner. Woodson is still wreaking havoc in the slot. Collins is one of the top safeties in the game. Peprah, intelligent and reliable, has been solid. And rookie safety Morgan Burnett, who opened the season as a starter and was hurt in Week 4, will be back.
Whitt and Perry are the glue that holds them together. One year after the Packers allowed those 34 passing touchdowns, they have given up just 19 in 19 games this season.
"The guys do an outstanding job of taking our coaching to the field," Whitt said. "We eliminate doubt from the equation and they go out there and play fast."
The Packers probably won't be able to keep Whitt and Perry much longer. The Eagles were interested in interviewing Perry, 42, for their defensive coordinator job before they filled it last week. He has one year remaining on his contract.
Whitt, the son of longtime Auburn assistant Joe Whitt Sr., aspires to be a head coach in the NFL. He undoubtedly has opened eyes around the league with his work in Green Bay and it won't be long before he is ascending the coaching ranks.
In the meantime, there is work to do. And a Super Bowl to win.