Captain Munnerlyn Breaks Down Aviators' Stacked Secondary: 'That Room Is Gonna Be Special'
Former NFL cornerback Captain Munnerlyn, a 10-year pro with the Carolina Panthers, Minnesota Vikings, and Buffalo Bills, is entering his first professional coaching role as defensive coordinator for the Columbus Aviators. At Media Day, Munnerlyn opened up about camp vibes, his journey, influences, and a defense poised to shine in 2026.
Acclimating to Pro Coaching: Players Buying In
"Oh it’s been great. It's been great, man. The guys have been very coachable. They've been showing up to work every day in this training camp. You know, training camp can get very tough on the body and tough on the mind. And these guys have been showing up each and every day, giving me their all. And that’s all I can ask, man. Being a young coach and trying to get these kids to buy in, that's been awesome. These kids, they're just buying in each and every day.”
“And I tell them, you know, I'm not that old. You know, I feel like sometimes when I go out there and move around with those guys, I feel like I still can go. And then reality hit me and like, oh, no. I'm sore now.”
“These guys, they've been awesome. You know, they've been awesome from the jump, man. Buying into my system, Buying into my coaching style. I always told the guys, got little man syndrome real bad. I feel like I'm bigger than what I am... But I'm, you know, in reality, I'm five nine. And I coach hard. You know, I coach hard because I want the best for these kids, man. I want the best for these young men. I want them everybody to feel what I feel, you know, that's playing at the next level, had an opportunity to play in NFL for a very long time. And I want these kids to get back there, and hopefully, some of them guys can stick.”
Reuniting with Ted Ginn Jr.: A Long-Promised Opportunity
“Ted called me years ago, and he was talking about coaching. And I had just gotten into the realm of coaching... You know, this is something that I can see myself doing. You know? He came down. We talked for several years. And he told me, he said, man, if I ever be a head coach, man, I'm coming to get you to be my defense coordinator. I was like, you know, we're just talking. You know, this is three, four years ago. And I'm like, man, you know, we're just talking, and sure be it. You know, he became a head coach, and he called me. He said, Cap, I got this opportunity for you. I want you to come in and, you know, be you. And I couldn't turn the opportunity down.”
“Me being a high school head coach, you know, still currently, and have an opportunity to, you know, coach in the UFL to, you know, actually step up the ladder and coaching, you know, I couldn't turn it down... For Ted giving me this opportunity, I'm grateful, and I'm a take advantage of it, man. I tell you that. Imma take advantage of it.”
“I know ball. You know? I can say that, man. I definitely know football, and I'm just excited to be around great coaching staff like we got, Todd Haley's (Offensive Coordinator) there. I can learn from, you know, the Bob (Saunders RB Coach), the Ronnie's (Vinklarek OL Coach), all the OGs. We call them our OGs because we really just still learning from one of them. I don't think I know it all. Don't get me wrong. I'm not that type of coach to say, I know it all because I don't. I'm still learning a lot, but at the same time, when I lean on these great coaches that's around me, I'll be fine.”
Munnerlyn credits Steve Wilks who coached Munnerlyn during his playing days with the Carolina Panthers for much of his style, plus his high school coach for instilling discipline.
“Steve Wilkes. Who was the he was in Arizona for a short term, but he was my position coach and my defensive coordinator when I was with the Panthers. You know, I call them all the time. You know, they always say great coaches steal. I stole a lot from him. So he's a guy who I'm on in my coaching style out there. He's a guy some of my sins I get from him, and my style of coaching, man, is definitely from him. He's probably one of the best coaches I ever had.”
“I get my discipline side of my coaching is is from my from my high school coach. He put it in at a very young age. I don't know. Did he think I was gonna make it to the NFL or go to the highest level? No. I think he just showed me how it was to be a pro. You know, I learned that at the early age, you know, from wearing the same socks as everybody. I remember one time I tell this quick story. When I was in high school. My team was blue and gold, and I wanted to wear gold socks, you know, yellow socks at the time. And the whole team had on blue. And I came out there pregame I had on yellow. And he said, don't know who you playing for today. And I'm like, man, I'm the star player on the team. You definitely gonna let me play. I came out there with them yellow socks. I didn't start the game. I had to go in the locker room and get them blue socks.”
“So he instilled that discipline in me earlier because when I went to college, you know, everybody gotta look the same in the weight room. Everybody gotta look the same on the field. And in NFL, you know the rules. If the stock come down a couple plays, it's $2,500. So it's rules that I abide by as a young age that got me prepared for stuff like this.”
Munnerlyn highlighted the defensive line when asked who has really stood out to him.
"I think up front, all those guys have been doing great. You look at Walt(er Plmore DT), Big Walt, you look at (Kenny) Wilkes (DE), you look at all those guys up front, man. They've been doing a tremendous job, and I always tell let's start up front, man. Let's start up front with those guys."
"I always tell the quick story to the guys also about you know, in 2013, we had a great front seven in Carolina, and all I had to do is catch the ball in the back end. You know, nobody knew who the secondary was, but everybody knew the Luke Kekeleys, the Charles Johnson, the Greg Hardys, and, you know, the Kawhorn Sharks, and the Thomas Davis. They didn't know who it was in the back end. And I tell the guys, up front, if y'all do what y'all supposed to do in the back end, y'all catch the ball, we make a whole lot of plays in this style of defense that I'm running."
On the importance of translating player gained knowledge and experience into coaching wisdom.
“It it's it's it's it's kinda easy because I played the game. You know? So I know I was hard headed at times with coaching... My coach would tell me to step with my right foot. Sometimes I step with my left foot, but I still make the play. And he'll come in like, you'll be a better player. So I'm a let you play, but I'm also gonna critique you, and I'm a try to put you in the best position, you know, to win.”
“So I just know what it takes, man. I know sometimes you're gonna get out your gap, and you have to fall back in another different, you know, direction. You get there, I'm a say what I need to say to you, but at the same time, I'm not gonna harp on it.. You made the play, but, hey, we're gonna try to correct it and do it my way, but I also want your guys to be comfortable in the scheme and comfortable within the defense. So I'm that style of coach.”
“I remember being in the with the Buffalo Bills in '24 2024, going up there working the summertime with coach McDermott and them, and they was telling Von Miller. You need to, you know, stand a certain way. And everybody was like, oh, man. And the coach came to him like, Von, you need to stand a certain way. Von Miller raises and he said, coach, no disrespect. This stand's made me 250 million dollars. And right then, in my young coaching career right then and there, and I was like, yo, he's a 100% right.”
“You know, it's hard to try to change a guy who's been stuck in his ways. At the high school level, you can do it. It's teaching football, you know, then coaching. You know, at this level, it's really coaching. You know, I can say what cover three and the guys in the back end should know what cover three is. You know, I can say a buck stunt and these guys should know what a buck stunt is, you know, things like that. And if they get it, if I can critique it a little bit and tell them the steps they need to make and how it can look better and show them. If I pull up some old clips and show them how if you step this way, it will look this clean.”
“I think that's the style of coaching I got, and I think those guys respect it more about showing them than just say, hey. You need to do this. And if I pull a clip up and show them, I think it's better.”
The Secondary: A 'Special' Group Ready to Shine
“Man, that room is gonna be special. That room is gonna be special. I always say it starts up front. Don't get me wrong, it does. But in the back end, you gotta be able to cover. With my style of defense, I've seen a lot of blitzes. I like the ball to come out when you gotta be able to tackle.”
“It starts with a guy who who went second round in the NFL with Cam Smith, you know, to the Miami Dolphins, and he's special. And you can see the talent level there. You see why he went second round. And as the coaches, we talk about that all the time. His talent level is there. My job is to enhance his game a little bit more, get him smarter as a football player, give him a little bit more tools to get him back to the next level. It starts with him. He's a very good player.”
“And and you go back now, you got the other kid, OD (O'Donnell Fortune), who's been with the Giants sometimes. He's a long range of corner that can play zone, can play man, that can do it all. You know? And that's what I like.”
“Then you go back with the safety position. You know, Henry Black is gonna be a very special kid for us this year. He's a guy, very smart, he don't say much, he don't talk much, but he'd be in the right position all the time, and he knows the defense.”
“Then you go with the guy like Kyrie Woods. Kyrie Woods, who've been playing in this league, who's gonna be very special at the nickelback position for me. I see a lot of myself in Kyrie. You know, Kyrie is a very smart, very smart kid, tough. Ball skills are there. He just wanna do everything the right way.”
“Then you look at guys like Ked Whitehead. He's a guy who's kinda built like me, you know, as I speak to right now to this day. A basic guy you can put in a box and 12 personnel who can go up and and make tackles, who's fly around, who's very special on special teams, but also can help you back in the back end.”
“You got a guy like Akeem Dent, who's never got the opportunity that I say that he should deserve to. And he's a guy who really just need the opportunity to flourish. You know? He's he's like that plant that you keep watering, and it's time to grow. And that's what I'm here for. I'm here to, you know, make him grow. But I can call I can talk all about these guys all day, man.”
“You got guys like Nehemiah (Shelton). Nehemiah's a guy who's I think if he could help himself learning the cornerback position or learning how to play safety, we'll help him stick in the NFL. Because if you look at special team wise, he's a damn good special team player. But what's gonna help him take and stick to our team is your cornerback position play. You gotta be able to play that position too. You can't just be a one hit pony in the NFL. They just don't have just special teams guys because if somebody go down, it's gotta be the next man up mentality. So if I can sharpen his tools at the cornerback position, we'll be fine. I can talk about the whole group, but I know we probably ain't got that much time.”
On why spring football is important for coaches like Munnerlyn rising up in the ranking:
"I think it's showing that what you can do and what you know as a coach. You know? This is a damn good resume builder. I'm just being honest with you. To have this on my resume to show it say that I coached at the professional level and to go out there and be and we're very successful. It's gonna help me move up because of my name already, you know, who I am and how I played the game and how I'm respected about, you know, a lot of my peers and a lot of coaches that's in that realm. So it it was a no brainer. Like I said, man, it was a no brainer for me to take this opportunity and and and go coach.”
Captain Munnerlyn Breaks Down Aviators' Stacked Secondary: 'That Room Is Gonna Be Special' by Jonathan Clink
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