S Donte Whitner (Official Thread)

[Buckskin86]

Donte Whitner wants charges sidelined
He asked to dismiss charges through probation
Updated: Tuesday, 29 Sep 2009
Mark Perrotte
Posted by Kate McGowan

BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) - Buffalo Bills Defensive Back, Donte Whitner wants his criminal case sidelined.

Whitner's attorney asked a judge in Cleveland to dismiss disorderly conduct charges through a probation program for first time offenders.

Whitner was arrested outside a Cleveland night club in April.

A hearing is scheduled for October.

All of this comes just a little after someone stole $400,000 in jewelry and other items from Whitner's home in Hamburg.

Donte Whitner wants charges sidelined | WIVB.com

Whitner appreciates well wishers
Chris Brown
Posted September 30th, 2009

Donte Whitner has been getting a lot of well wishes sent to him on his twitter account on the heels of his thumb surgery.

Whitner tweeted back that he appreciated all the positive sentiments and downplayed his injury.

DonteWhitner Thanks for all the wonderful tweets wishing me well! Nothing major?don?t count me out!

Whitner appreciates well wishers – Inside The Bills

DonteWhitner (DonteWhitner) on Twitter

 

[osucollegebuck]

Buffalo Bills Official Online Pro Shop -

Kind of a neat idea by the Bills allowing certain players to design hats and t shirts regarding their inspirations. Whitner's hat features Glenville and Ohio State.

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[osucollegebuck]

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[FrancisSoyer]

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Not my style but it's cool as hell.

 

[Buckskin86]

Whitner and Scott eager to returnBy Chris Brown, Lead Journalist

It?s been a long two weeks of inactivity for Buffalo starting safeties Bryan Scott and Donte Whitner. Both were injured in the Bills? Week 3 loss to New Orleans and haven?t taken the field since. The two defensive backs have been forced to watch their team lose back-to-back games to winless opponents.

Scott suffered a high ankle sprain while Whitner suffered a thumb injury that required surgery. But just two weeks removed from sustaining those injuries both safeties are eager to get back on the field to help reverse a Bills season that?s headed the wrong way fast.

Meanwhile Whitner is coming off of thumb surgery, which repaired damaged ligaments. The free safety always believes he?s ready to return to action right away and on Monday his mindset was no different.

?I wanted to get out there last week,? Whitner told the Associated Press. ?Even though people tell you ?No, you?re not ready.? But inside you want to get out there and play. I think I'm close. The (trainers) think I'm close, but I've got a couple of tests to do. I feel like I'm close and they feel like I'm close, so we'll see.?

If Whitner is able to play Sunday against the Jets where he lines up will largely hinge on the status of Scott. If Scott can rejoin him in the lineup they?ll assume their usual strong and free safety roles. Should Scott?s high ankle sprain keep him out another week, Whitner would move up to strong safety with rookie Jairus Byrd remaining at free safety. But neither of them appear to be locks to play at this point.

Whitner and Scott eager to return

 

[Buckskin86]

Bills S Whitner thumbs nose at his injury
JOHN WAWROW
Published: October 13, 2009

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) ? Bills safety Donte Whitner is so eager to get back playing that he looked down at the ice pack wrapped around his surgically repaired right thumb and wondered what all the fuss was about.

"Thumb?" Whitner said. "I don't really need this thumb for the rest of my life, you know."

Though Whitner probably was kidding, it's clear what his intentions are on Sunday, when the stumbling Bills (1-4) travel to face AFC East rival New York Jets (3-2). Whitner's already missed two weeks since he tore ligaments in his thumb in a loss to New Orleans, and he's not prepared to miss another.

"My initial thought going into surgery was I wanted to play that week. But they thought that was dangerous," Whitner said, referring to team doctors. "But it's a couple of weeks down the road, and I feel like I'm pretty close."

The Bills could use some good news. They've lost three straight, including consecutive games to winless teams following an ugly 6-3 loss to Cleveland on Sunday. Their offense is anemic and their defense riddled with injuries after starting linebacker Kawika Mitchell and his backup, Marcus Buggs, sustained season-ending knee injuries against the Browns.

The defensive backfield is banged up as well. Aside from Whitner, starting strong safety Bryan Scott (high ankle sprain) has missed two games and is listed week to week, and starting cornerback Leodis McKelvin was placed on injured reserve, ending his season, after breaking his leg two weeks ago.

Scott will know more about his playing status after testing his ankle on Tuesday.

Whitner is regarded as the defense's emotional leader. Drafted eighth overall in 2006 out of Ohio State, he is a four-year starter who has proven to be a physical tackler and also is versatile enough to play safety or cornerback. Entering this season, his 256 tackles ranked him fourth among NFL defensive backs over the previous three years.

Whitner's concerned about the Bills slow start, but refused to use injuries as an excuse.

"We have to understand that this is the National Football League and nobody's going to feel sorry for you," he said. "We understand that there's going to have to be some changes. I don't know where those changes are going to have to be, but there's going to have to be some."

Whitner stressed he wasn't referring to coach Dick Jauron, who's on the hot seat and being criticized for the team's troubles.

"I'm not saying like a coaching change, I'm saying maybe personnel, maybe," he said. "We're going to have to do some things to get going."

Read more: NewsOK

 

[Buckskin86]

Poz, Whitner look ready to return
TO ready for matchup with Revis
Thursday, 15 Oct 2009
John Murphy

Ralph Wilson Stadium - Some good news from the Bills. Two injured players got in full practices Thursday. Linebacker Paul Posluszny and safety Donte Whitner participated fully in the workout, and it looks like they could be ready to return to the lineup Sunday against the Jets.

Poz, Whitner look ready to return|WIVB.com

 

[Buckskin86]

Safety Donte Whitner, who played with a surgically repaired thumb, left in the first half with an ankle injury.

Bills notebook: Young offensive line holds its own : Sports : The Buffalo News

 

[Buckskin86]

Buffalo Bills' Donte Whitner gets probation in disorderly conduct case in Cleveland
By Donna J. Miller, Plain Dealer reporter
October 27, 2009

Plain Dealer file

CLEVELAND ? Buffalo Bills defensive back and former Ohio State University star Donte Whitner was placed in an intervention program Monday at Cleveland Muncipal Court, where he is charged with aggravated disorderly conduct and resisting arrest.

Police stunned the 23-year-old with a Taser and arrested him April 11 after a birthday party at the House of Blues turned into a brawl, Lt. Thomas Stacho said.

Whitner was celebrating the birthday of Ted Ginn Jr., wide receiver for the Miami Dolphins. The two played football together at Glenville High School and Ohio State. Police were called about 3 a.m., when patrons started fighting.

Whitner was told to step away from the unruly crowd. He pushed past officers who tried to restrain him, police said. He took a "fighting stance" and was shocked with the Taser, Stacho said.

He was cuffed, booked at City Jail and released. He issued a statement hours later saying he regretted the incident. "I apologize to all involved," he said.

If Whitner completes the intervention program, he will not have a criminal record. He asked if he qualified for the program for first-time offenders at a hearing Sept. 29. Judge Angela Stokes placed him in it yesterday, the day before a scheduled hearing.

Buffalo Bills' Donte Whitner gets probation in disorderly conduct case in Cleveland | Metro - cleveland.com - cleveland.com

 

[Buckskin86]

Donte Whitner would welcome Ted Ginn to Buffalo
Posted by Mike Florio on October 28,

With all signs pointing to the gradual (if not faster) disappearance of receiver Ted Ginn from relevance, one of his former Ohio State teammates is more than willing to give him a new home.

Bills safety Donte Whitner, "retweeting" the headline to our story indicating that Ginn has been marginalized at practice, offers encouragement for Ginn.

"[Push] through this bro!" Whitner says in his message. "We'll take u!"

Donte Whitner would welcome Ted Ginn to Buffalo | ProFootballTalk.com

Twitter / DonteWhitner: RT @ProFootballTalk: Ted G ...

 

[Buckskin86]

McGee, Whitner on the mend
Chris Brown, Lead Journalist

Buffalo?s secondary is slowly but surely returning to full strength. Though Leodis McKelvin is lost for the season, at least one of Buffalo?s starting safeties will be available after a five-game absence in Bryan Scott. Fellow safety Donte Whitner is also back on the practice field, but isn?t ready to declare himself back.

?I?ve been doing a lot of things for a couple of days,? said Whitner after practice Monday. ?It feels pretty good when I wake up. It?s just getting back in the swing of things. I miss it. I miss these guys, miss being out there. I did a couple of things out there (Monday). It felt pretty good. We?ll see when we get back out there Wednesday.?

Whitner has been dealing with a painful ankle injury and driving off the ankle, a necessity for a defensive back, initially proved difficult. But he appeared to move well in practice Monday. Still he wants to see how the ankle holds up through the course of the week.

?I don?t know about expecting to play,? said Whitner. ?I?m not 100 percent. We?ll see after practice on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday.?

The Bills safety has made a point of staying in tune with Buffalo?s defensive game plans each week attending all team meetings despite sitting out the past two games after sustaining the injury against the Jets in Week 6. He?s been proud of the job turned in by Jairus Byrd and George Wilson with he and Scott out of the lineup.

?We take pride in when a guy goes down other guys get in and play well,? said Whitner. ?That?s what has been going on in the secondary and the guys have been doing really well on the back end. We don?t want to curse ourselves. We want to keep working and pick up where we left off last game.?

Buffalo?s secondary had two more interceptions courtesy of rookie Jairus Byrd, who doesn?t figure to be coming out of the lineup no matter what veterans are healthy. Whitner, however, is confident the coaching staff will find a way to get both himself and Scott back on the field.

?I feel there will be instances where we?re on the field at the same time,? said Whitner. ?Whether it?s Bryan (Scott) playing linebacker or me coming down in the box and playing linebacker, we?re doing some things in order to keep players that make plays on the football field. That?s what the coaches are doing and I commend them for that.?

McGee, Whitner on the mend

 

[Buckskin86]

Bills' Whitner itching to return
Safety plays it safe with high ankle sprain
By Allen Wilson
NEWS SPORTS REPORTER
Updated: November 10, 2009d

Donte Whitner has played football most of his life, so he understands that injuries are part of the game.

That doesn't mean he has to like it.

The veteran safety has appeared in only four of the Buffalo Bills' first eight games. He missed two because of thumb surgery. In his first game back, he suffered a high ankle sprain that kept him out of the last two contests.

"It's very tough," Whitner said. "You almost have to pull yourself out of a funk every now and then because a lot of times when you miss a lot of time you feel kind of worthless. You're just around watching practice, watching film, talking to guys in the training room, but you're not actually out there putting all the work in.

"It's not like I want to be out injured. You don't want anything that's going to be prolonged or anything that's going to be career- or season-ending. I'm just thankful I don't have that. I have an opportunity to maybe play the next eight games of the season and I'm looking forward to it."

Whitner wants to play on Sunday when the Bills visit the Tennessee Titans, but he can't say for sure he'll be able to. High ankle sprains usually take four to six weeks to heal, so his return this week would be ahead of schedule.

Whitner practiced on Monday and is expected to participate in workouts today and Thursday, though he's not certain how much he'll be able to do.

Bills' Whitner itching to return : Sports : The Buffalo News

 

[Buckskin86]

Safety Donte Whitner and right tackle Jamon Meredith dressed Sunday, but did not play because they weren't fully recovered from injuries. They dressed only on an emergency basis.

"I liked the way he had worked last week but it was really his first week back of working," Jauron said, regarding Whitner. " thought he was close to being ready and we would've used him if we had to in that game so that's kind of where it is. We expect that he'll just keep getting better now in this week of practice."

Bills notebook: Jauron won't say if Edwards is starter : Sports : The Buffalo News

 

[Buckskin86]

Whitner's return means safety in numbers for Bills
By Allen Wilson
News Sports Reporter
Updated: November 27, 2009

Bills safety Donte Whitner hasn't started since returning from injury but played a lot last week in Jacksonville.
Mark Mulville / Buffalo News file photo

Donte Whitner is healthier than he has been in several weeks. But when the Buffalo Bills' defense trotted on the field last Sunday at Jacksonville, the veteran safety was not in the starting lineup.

Instead, George Wilson and Jairus Byrd opened the game as the Bills' safeties. It was the sixth time in the last seven games they were the starting combination.

Whitner played a lot last Sunday, often as a nickel cornerback because the Bills were short-handed at that position. He also saw time at free safety where Byrd has been limited with a sore groin.

Whitner's backup role made him feel like a sixth man on a basketball team.

"Yeah, I think that would be the best way to describe it," said Whitner, who had started 46 straight games he suited up for until the last two contests. "I didn't start, but I played most of the game. It was a different feel not starting. I didn't know why it happened and I haven't really talked to anyone about it.

"But I don't really worry about that. As long as I'm on the football field and being out there with my teammates and playing that's the only thing that matters."

Whitner isn't sure if he will start on Sunday against the Miami Dolphins. Bills interim head coach Perry Fewell declined to announce that decision.

What Fewell did say is having three quality safeties is "a good problem to have."

Whitner's return means safety in numbers for Bills : Sports : The Buffalo News

 

[Buckskin86]

Donte Whitner announced his intentions quickly Sunday. On the Bills? first defensive play, Whitner came late off the backside and got a piece of the ball as Chad Henne released it. Whitner stuffed Ricky Williams after a short gain on the next play. And even though Miami converted on a third down, Whitner charged in again, nearly getting to Henne on yet another blitz.

The message to Whitner sounds like the same one Fewell made last week to Terrell Owens ? we?re getting you involved.

The former first-round pick even added an interception in the late going, stepping in front of a bad throw from Henne.

Many have been quick to write Whitner out of the Bills? plans next season, even though he?s been capable in the past. Maybe this was his signature game ? 10 total tackles, two pass deflections, one interception ? and a sign that he intends to keep his job in Buffalo.

Niagara Gazette - BILLS DVR REWIND: Defense kept Buffalo in Sunday's win