| Washington Commanders | |
|---|---|
| Position: | Defensive coordinator |
| Personal information | |
| Born: | (1978-07-19)July 19, 1978 (age 46) Auburn, Alabama, U.S. |
| Career information | |
| High school: | Auburn |
| College: | Auburn (1998–2000) |
| Career history | |
As a coach: | |
| |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
| Coaching profile atPro Football Reference | |
Joe Whitt Jr. (born July 19, 1978) is an American professionalfootball coach who is thedefensive coordinator for theWashington Commanders of theNational Football League (NFL). He playedcollege football for theAuburn Tigers and has served as adefensive backs coach with the NFL'sAtlanta Falcons,Green Bay Packers,Cleveland Browns, andDallas Cowboys.
Whitt was born on July 19, 1978, inAuburn, Alabama. He graduated fromAuburn High School in 1997 and playedcollege football for theAuburn Tigers football team as awide receiver before earning a degree in communications in 2001.
Whitt was hired as a student assistant for the Tigers after graduation. He worked as wide receivers coach atThe Citadel in 2002 before joiningLouisville the following year as a cornerbacks coach and recruiting coordinator under head coachBobby Petrino. In 2007, Whitt followed Petrino when he was hired as head coach of the NFL'sAtlanta Falcons, working as an assistant defensive backs coach before joining theGreen Bay Packers in 2008 as a defensive quality control coach.[1] He was promoted to cornerbacks coach in 2009. Under his coaching,Charles Woodson was named the 2009Defensive Player of the Year.[2][3][4] He was fired following the 2018 season, which he spent as a defensive passing game coordinator.[5]
Whitt worked as the secondary coach and pass game coordinator for theCleveland Browns in 2019 and Falcons in 2020.[6] Serving as secondary coach and pass game coordinator, Whitt helped the Browns finish seventh in the league in pass defense.[7] On January 9, 2020, theAtlanta Falcons hired Whitt as secondary coach.[7] On January 13, 2021, Whitt joined theDallas Cowboys for the same role.[8] During his time with Dallas, he was credited with developing cornerbacksTrevon Diggs andDaRon Bland, with Diggs leading the NFL in interceptions in 2021 with 11 and Bland setting the single-season record for interceptions returned for a touchdown with five in 2023.[9] On February 5, 2024, Whitt was hired by theWashington Commanders asdefensive coordinator under head coachDan Quinn, who he had been working under since the Falcons in 2020.[10]
