The history of the “elephant end” position — a linebacker who serves more the purpose of a defensive end — dates back to the San Francisco 49ers of the 1980s. Those 49ers had a linebacker of similar build and playing style to Matthews in Charles Haley. The “elephant” role maximized his utility in pass-rushing situations, while leaving him less helpless at the point of attack against oversized run-blocking linemen.

Matthews took over as the starter at “elephant end” during his senior season at USC, and from 2008 until this November, that was his only position. And why not? He was, and still is, extremely good in that role. The four-time Pro Bowler tallied double-digit sacks when healthy, and anchored a Super Bowl-winning defense.

Thing is, Julius Peppers has been extremely good in that role, too. Peppers came into the league as a mildly undersized defensive end who was able to turn his smallish-ness into an asset instead of a liability. His athleticism and pass rushing ability were reminiscent of Reggie White in his prime — perhaps the highest compliment you can give an NFL defensive end. As he aged, he grew out of the criticism he had faced early in his career, that he oversold on the pass rush and neglected his run-stopping duties.

Doubting Peppers’ ability to transition into a successful elephant remains to this day one of the most boneheaded thoughts I’ve ever entertained. In hindsight, perhaps “will Peppers work?” was the wrong question. Perhaps we should have been asking, “why didn’t somebody think of this sooner?” An athletic, undersized defensive end who specializes in disrupting pass protection, but can physically withstand an overloaded zone blocking system? That’s your definition of a prototypical elephant end.

The Packers had a second, simpler problem compounding things. In a 3–4 scheme, the nose tackle is arguably the most irreplaceable player in the lineup. Guion — though he has done an admirable job pressed into action — is listed at a full 39 pounds lighter than B.J. Raji, who was placed on injured reserve before the season even started. Although he is fundamentally solid, fills the right holes, and has a great nose for popping the ball loose in piles, Guion’s lack of girth makes him an awkward fit in the Packers 3–4 defense. The nose tackle has one job, really — to be big and make the offense waste resources to keep you from moving the line of scrimmage. Guion, who weighs in under the 300-pound mark, predictably struggled to hold down the middle singlehandedly for the Packers.

Something had to change in order to dissuade opponents from gut-punching the Packers to death in the second half of the season. Since moving Peppers was out of the question, and without any real upgrades available for import, it was time to think outside the box.

Few NFL players could adapt to a positional change on the fly, but Clay Matthews is not a typical NFL player. He’s been a student of the game since he wasn’t old enough to know any better, and you can count on one hand the number of players in the league with his athleticism.