John Lynch made the transition from quarterback to safety at Stanford and enjoyed a 15-year NFL career. Richard Sherman moved from wide receiver to the secondary and is regarded as a shutdown corner for the Seattle Seahawks.

Those examples make it impossible to write off Dallas Lloyd and Kodi Whitfield, who sit atop the depth chart at safety as No. 21 Cardinal prepares to kick off its season at Northwestern on Saturday.

“Last year was their real first full year on defense, so it was a learning process for them,” defensive coordinator Lance Anderson said. “But you could really see this spring with both of them that things started to click, things started to make sense to them, they were starting to process things a lot faster.”

Whitfield, a wide receiver his first two years on The Farm, is best remembered for his acrobatic one-handed stab that resulted in a 30-yard touchdown against UCLA in 2013.

“That is my long-lasting offensive highlight,” Whitfield said. “I kind of still get guys tell me about it and saying that was one of the best catches they’d ever seen. It’s fun because any time I drop a ball on defense now they’re like, ‘Oh, whatever happened to those great hands?’ “

Lloyd, who spent two years as a backup to Kevin Hogan, made the switch after back-to-back trips to the Rose Bowl for the Cardinal.

“I think we were both on the same page,” Lloyd said of his conversation with head coach David Shaw prior to spring practice last year. “I look up to him, like he’s a father figure, and I feel really comfortable around him. And I approached him one day in his office, we sat down and I asked him what he thought about me switching positions, because I loved playing quarterback. I’ve had a blast, but I felt like I could contribute to the team in other ways.”

It helped that a few months later Lloyd took a business analysis class in summer school along with Lynch, who was finishing his degree.

“It was so fun to sit down and watch his highlight film and just see him take people’s heads off,” Lloyd said. “He is ferocious. And then when you meet him and you talk to him in person, he is so down to earth and so kind and he’s so caring. And I thought the same thing when I met Richard Sherman. But he was very helpful.”

While Lloyd played defensive back up to his junior year in high school, Whitfield played both ways throughout.

“When I was recruited, I kind of had the option of playing both,” Whitfield said. “So I came in just wanting to play offense because that’s what I did mostly in high school even though I did play both ways. And going into my junior year, just looking at the depth chart on both sides of the ball it just looked like I had a better chance at increasing my role on the defensive side of the ball. And Coach Shaw agreed with that.”

It certainly didn’t hurt to make the transition together. In a way, it’s been a symbiotic relationship.

“When you think about it, in spring the freshman class that we recruited hadn’t gotten there yet,” said Whitfield, who noted a flip in mind-set was necessary to become more physical while playing on his toes. “So really Dallas and I are the two freshmen, so having him learning it with me and someone that I could ask questions with, see how they’re learning it, we really fed off each other. That’s why now we have a great bond back there and kind of tied to a string.”

Lloyd agreed: “I made the switch first, but having Kodi with me has been probably the best part about the switch because we both have learned everything together and we’re both out there making calls together. When he makes plays, I’m super stoked about it. And when I make a play, same thing. We just complement each other.”

Is there any trepidation in the mind of Shaw about relying on a secondary that includes a former quarterback and wide receiver?

“Nope,” he said. “They’ve earned our trust.”

Plus, it’s worked out before at Stanford.

Lloyd on the chance to tackle Hogan at practice. “No way, I wouldn’t hit him. I love him too much.”