GREEN BAY, Wis. -- Frankly, this is a little weird.

The Bristol, Conn.-based reporter and producer have flown halfway across the country to sit in this dark television studio in the bowels of Lambeau Field -- through the wall, you can hear the forklifts carrying Sunday's peanuts and popcorn -- and chat with the Green Bay Packers about, about … what?

About Ahman Green's phenomenal ability to sweat, that's what.

	Green is third in the NFC with 712 rushing yards.

"Man, I can't believe I'm answering questions about a man's sweat," said fullback William Henderson, a good friend of Green's.

Said head coach Mike Sherman, "You guys are making too big a deal about this."

But Sylvester Croom, the Packers' running back coach, observed, "If it's a problem in his mind, it's a problem."

When you carry the football for a living, anything that prevents you from holding on to it can be considered career-threatening. Thus, the daunting dilemma of Green.

At 6-feet, 217 pounds, Green is an unnatural combination of speed and power. He has run the ball for 3,274 yards over the last 2½ seasons for the Packers. Through eight games this year he has carried 162 times for 712 yards, which ranks him seventh in the NFL. Green catches the ball exceptionally well out of the backfield -- he led the Packers in receptions the last two years -- he works hard in the offseason and he is willing to block. He is, by all accounts, an overwhelmingly positive influence in the locker room, a coachable athlete.

There is only one downside: Green has fumbled the football 15 times, losing it 11 times.

Depending on who you talk to, this is because: 1) Green has a condition that may well be hyperhidrosis, the overproduction of sweat or; 2) He simply doesn't protect the ball properly or, more likely; 3) The combination of the two above creates even more anxiety than the impending impact of several converging tacklers.

Sweat, in a historic sense, is seen as a good thing -- unless it has lingered for too long. It is the natural residue, the reward, of effort. In Green's case, however, it is most definitely a bad thing.

For the record, Green does not acknowledge sweat as a factor in his fumbling.

"That's an excuse," he said stoically. "I really don't think it's an issue."

Since the subject became something of an issue in Green Bay earlier this season, people have tended to make light of Green's plight. Variations on "no sweat" jokes have been the unfortunate knee-jerk response. And, to a degree, someone who sweats profusely is hardly a tragic figure; the image of health guru Richard Simmons sweating to the oldies with a cast of less-than-svelte followers does comes to mind -- despite all conscious efforts to shut it out.

The truth is, Green's fumbles are what brought him to Green Bay. He was drafted in the third round of the 1998 draft (No. 76 overall) by the Seattle Seahawks and saw modest action, carrying only 61 times in 30 games. Head coach Mike Holmgren has always had a low tolerance for fumblers and he viewed Green as a terminal case. This is why Sherman was able to trade for Green after he was named the Packers' head coach in 2000.

Sherman, who had worked as an assistant to Holmgren in Green Bay and was his offensive coordinator for a year in Seattle, dealt defensive back Fred Vinson and a sixth-round choice to the Seahawks for Green and their fifth-round pick.

Green fumbled six times in 2000, losing four, but he also ran for 1,175 yards. In 2001, Green fumbled five times, losing four but he produced 1,981 combined yards. Clearly, Sherman was willing to accept the tradeoff.

In the 2002 opener, on Sept. 8, it was uncommonly hot when the Packers hosted the Atlanta Falcons at Lambeau Field. Game-time temperature was 83 degrees and the humidty was 64 percent. Green fumbled twice, losing one, and a third fumble was negated by a referee's whistle.

"I certainly don't want to fumble, but there's a lot of things that factor in," Green said. "I sweat profusely. That made it a little tougher.

"I'd rather it snow or be 60 degrees and clear. That's how I've been all my life."

Sherman seemed willing accept the explanation.

	“	He needs to secure that football like it's his first-born son. ”
		— Coach Mike Sherman, on RB Ahman Green's fumbling problem

"I don't think (fumbles are) anything that we're forced to live with," Sherman said. "Knowing that his body sweats so profusely like his does, it's a problem. He protected the ball better as the game went along.

"We're trying everything possible. He's got sleeves on both arms. He changes his jersey, but five minutes later, he's soaking wet again. It's something we've just got to continue to work with."

Added Green, "I've said before I don't want to make that an issue. Me thinking about that, then it becomes a problem. I just have to be professional and be ready for it next time."

Green wears a special absorbent t-shirt, as well as sleeves that cover his forearms; he changed his jersey four times against the Falcons and took fluids intravenously to fight cramps and dehydration.

And then a week later, in the climate-controlled Louisiana Superdome, Green fumbled again. The concerns deepened. In the span of two games, Green lost a pair of fumbles in the second quarter that gave the Falcons and Saints the ball inside the Packers' 30-yard-line. Both led to touchdowns and a 14-3 lead for the opponent.

Three days later, Sherman was asked about Green's prodigious propensity to sweat.

"Let's be honest about it," Sherman said. "We used the sweat thing and now we're done with that one.

"He needs to secure that football like it's his first-born son."

The implication was that Green wasn't adequately protecting the ball. Two days after the New Orleans game, Croom said as much. He had reviewed tape of the fumble that occurred when Saints linebacker Charlie Clemons hit Green from the side.

"When contact was made, the hand was below (the ball)," Croom said. "The ball was in there where it's supposed to be, but (the right) hand had not covered it properly. It squirted out. If his hand had been there it might have been bobbled, but it would still be there."

Proper technique, Croom insisted, would help eliminate the problem, particularly when he fended off tacklers and was about to hit the ground.

"We'll make an issue of it and make him aware of it. We do all the drills and we'll continue to do them."

Green, who is left-handed, has always carried the ball in his left hand. Unlike most NFL running backs, he doesn't switch the ball to the outside hand when tacklers close in. He practiced making the switch during the offseason, but never felt comfortable.

Whether it was the increased emphasis in practice or the gradually cooling game-day temperatures, Green has gotten a handle on his fumbling. In the last six games, he has only lost one ball, on Oct. 20 against Washington on a 44-degree day.

Based on Green's history, there is reason to think that the worst has passed. Of his five regular-season fumbles last year, only one came in the final eight games, though he did fumble once in two postseason games. That the temperature in Green Bay steadily declines during the season -- the average temperature in September is 58.3 degrees, compared to October (47.3), November (43.4), December (30.1) and January (20.1) -- may be a coincidence. Or not.

"If this was a bad kid or a guy that wasn't conscientious (I'd be concerned)," Sherman said. "But this is a great kid who is extremely conscientious who feels terrible about it and wants to fix it and is a willing participant to fixing it."

And what if he doesn't? Would it be time to give the ball to someone else?

"We have to be realistic about that," Sherman said. "First of all, you've got to look at the person, the guy. I just believe in this guy. Being realistic, we don't have anybody of his talent on this football team that can run the football like he dos. Until we do, there is no realistic threat, to be honest with you. I'd be lying if I said there was.

"But I believe in the guy. I believe that he'll get this worked out."

Greg Garber is a senior writer at ESPN.com.