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Whitner maintains focus on the game

Distractions haven't slowed Bills' rookie

Sal Maiorana
Staff writer

(August 29, 2006) — ORCHARD PARK — Given what rookie Donte Whitner has experienced in the last few weeks, you'd think his head would be spinning faster than a golf ball struck by Tiger Woods' pitching wedge.
The eighth overall pick in the 2006 NFL draft endured a bothersome one-week holdout while his contract was being negotiated and thus missed valuable practice time in training camp.
When he finally made it to St. John Fisher College, he literally hit the ground running as he was thrust into the starting strong safety spot in his second week because Matt Bowen suffered a leg injury.
He spent some time consoling his good friend, fellow rookie and former Ohio State teammate Ashton Youboty when the latter's mother died.

And on the day of her funeral last week, Whitner couldn't be there because his son, Donte Jr., was being born nearly two months premature back in his hometown of Cleveland.
Yet through it all, Whitner has been rock solid on the field and off and it seems apparent that he will be starting when the Bills open the season at New England on Sept. 10.
"If you want to be good early, you have to take everything as it comes and not get overwhelmed," Whitner said, explaining his philosophy for coping with all these rapid-fire events in the midst of trying to learn how to play football at the NFL level with the pressure of being a must-produce top-10 draft pick.
"I take each play and think about what I have to do on that play, and then off the field I try to stay away from all distractions. I have a lot of good people around me. My parents, my grandparents, my high school coach (Ted Ginn Sr., father of Ohio State star Ted Ginn Jr.), coach (Jim) Tressel and the coaches at Ohio State that I keep in contact with. Some people, when they get to this level, they think everything is going so fast, but I don't feel like that."
Of the contract holdout, which had everyone outside the negotiations perplexed because the draft picks around him had already been slotted and signed, Whitner said: "My thought was you have to take care of the business aspect first. I knew I would get in, and then when I got here I knew I had to get to work and pick up things fast out on the field."
As for the birth of his son, he did admit that was a little scary.

"He wasn't supposed to be born until Oct. 4, but he's doing good," the 21-year-old said of Donte Jr., who spent the first 20 minutes of his life with a tube down his throat to help him breathe.
"He's four pounds, seven ounces, but he's breathing on his own and his lungs are good. If you were to look at him you wouldn't think he was premature. It was hard coming back, and I don't know when I'll be able to see him again, so that's kind of hard."
Obviously harder than it has been for the talented 5-foot-10, 204-pounder to assimilate to life in the NFL. Whitner reported to camp on Aug. 5, participated in his first practice on Aug. 7, and despite limited reps played in the preseason opener at Carolina on Aug. 12.
Predictably he struggled with his assignments against the Panthers, but when Bowen hurt his leg, Whitner moved to first string and has started the last two preseason games against Cincinnati and Cleveland.
"I was a little surprised," Whitner said of his ascension to the starting lineup. "It does show confidence and it'll make me work harder knowing that the coaches have put that trust in me.
"I just want to come out here and continue to work. I can't get complacent because I still have a lot to learn, so I'm just going to keep on working and play the best that I can."
And with increased practice time, his play was better in both games.

"I love his athleticism, but I've said this before, his overall knowledge is still lacking," defensive coordinator Perry Fewell said. "The game is faster than it was in college and he has to catch up mentally with us because he missed some time.
"He's got excellent speed and excellent quickness. If he can put together the call on our defense, we expect some good fundamental play out of him. What we've seen on tape, his willingness and desire, all those things are there."
Veteran free safety Troy Vincent has taken Whitner under his wing and helped him get his bearings. But Vincent also said that Whitner wasn't exactly clueless as many rookies often are because he has a unique maturity about him.
"I think he's handled it just as well as you can handle it for a young man his age," Vincent said.

"He has a lot on his shoulders, a lot of high expectations, but he's been quiet and very open to constructive criticism.
"He's a talented young man and the coaches have done an excellent job of getting him prepared. The pages in the playbook are flipping every day and he's picking it up and not making mental mistakes. He knows where he fits in, he leans on his teammates, and he's getting good advice. I've seen great progress in him and I'm looking forward to playing with him."