And now, with second-year Jason Pinnock, another Pitt alum, the Jets could occasionally have two former Panthers playing it safe.

“I remember when he was at Pitt, I was a junior and he was like my little brother,” Whitehead said, referring to Pinnock. “He’s always had ball skills and the fact that he’s safe now gives him a chance to play freely, to move around. He’s got a lot of range. As he gets smarter and more comfortable, he will be great.”

Whitehead could barely contain his optimism about what was to come.

“I think this may be one of the best secondaries I’ve attended in five years,” he said. “These guys are hungry.

“This group is very smart, a lot of hard workers. I don’t see a difference between this group and the last team I was on and the group of guys I played with, Richard Sherman and all those guys. We We got it here. We have everything we need: the ability, the tenacity and the intelligence to play this game, so there’s no doubt that we should be the best group.”

Although Whitehead is all-in on the Jets’ revamped secondary, defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich is more circumspect.

“Time will tell,” Ulbrich said Wednesday. “In this league, especially in today’s pass-happy landscape every week, it’s huge to have a revamped secondary. … With a good secondary, you can be a pretty good defense in this league.”