Lil Donte Still Talkin

[Bill from NYC]

You couldn't be more wrong but read Edwards Arm's post if you have such conviction in your opinion.

 

The Bills over-drafted him and as a result he made $36 million over 6 seasons in Buffalo. Had he gone even in the second round he would have made only about $6M. He was a terrible failure, gets humbled by disinterest in free agency...and then shows his lack of class by ripping the Bills organization that mistakenly made him rich beyond his wildest dreams. He had $30M extra reasons to be a man and keep his mouth shut. Yeah, Donte, we are aware the Bills organization sucks. Everybody knows this. You were a big part of the problem. Show an ounce of class and keep your mouth shut.

 

Just really, really inappropriate.

 

It's one thing to not take ownership of your own failure, but to blame his mediocrity on the scheme he was drafted in is ridiculous. The scheme he is in now features a fearsome front 7.......yet allowed him to make exactly ZERO positive impact for his team in the Super Bowl. In fact, he blew coverages, missed tackles and drew a personal foul penalty.

 

He's a very un-likeable a-hole.

 

As a long time poster, I have had my share of hits and misses on this board. Remember, I thought tht RJ was going to be great and lead this team to victory. I fully admit this.

That said, my biggest meltdown was when they drafted Whitner. I would have been fine with a list of other players in that stocked draft. And, Marv said that there were numerous trade down offers.

I stand by my prediction that he will be cut before next season. Imo, if the 49ers do win the superbowl, they will do so sans Whitner.

[RuntheDamnBall]

Hate him if you want but he started on a top 6 defense. Is he the best at his position? No but in the 49er scheme his skill set works. Donte does need to work on his coverage skills, big time, if he wants to contribute to a Super Bowl vicitory. I understand where he is coming from in that each year the 49ers improve and gets closer to their goal of a championship. They came close and maybe this years experience will put them over the top.

His skill set works until his opponent figures out how to isolate and target his coverage in the passing game. That's kind of an alarming deficiency in his skill set that directly led to first downs and touchdowns for this year's Super Bowl champions. What, do they just need to give Donte safety help over the top? Oh, wait.

[Sisyphean Bills]

Hate him if you want but he started on a top 6 defense.

Trenton Robinson was a rookie. He started ahead of a 6th round rookie. How is that impressive exactly?

Is he the best at his position? No but in the 49er scheme his skill set works.

Sure it does. That's why the Ravens game plan was to target Donte Whitner and knew the middle of the field would be open for business.

Donte does need to work on his coverage skills, big time, if he wants to contribute to a Super Bowl vicitory. I understand where he is coming from in that each year the 49ers improve and gets closer to their goal of a championship. They came close and maybe this years experience will put them over the top.

He's making the same mistakes that he did when he was in Buffalo. While he has not made strides, the guy has been on a stacked Ohio State defense and a stacked 49ers defense and gotten kudos for "being there" and delivering kill shots.

 

Don't be surprised if Harbaugh moves in another direction at SS next year.

[Buffalo Barbarian]

Just days after the SB Ex Bill Donte Whitner is back at it, runnin his mouth ..

 

He is predicting that "each year the 49ers take a step up & that next year they will win it all"

 

Although it is good to have the confidence in your team mates to carry you to a SB as was pointed out in the article it is hard to go to the big game 2 years in a row & that it hasn't been done since the Pats went back to back .

 

So good luck with that Donte we will all be waiting to see if your actions can cash in on what your mouth is saying ...

 

I think the same thing.

[BuffBill]

I never saw an issue with him setting lofty goals for the team.

I agree whole heartedly. Compare his two seasons away from Buffalo with this five seasons in Buffalo. Looks like he got the final laugh. He has been a part of about as many wins in two seasons in San Francisco as he was in 5 seasons in Buffalo combined.

[BADOLBILZ]

I agree whole heartedly. Compare his two seasons away from Buffalo with this five seasons in Buffalo. Looks like he got the final laugh. He has been a part of about as many wins in two seasons in San Francisco as he was in 5 seasons in Buffalo combined.

 

Who are you kidding, he got all the laughs! He got an extra $30 million by being drafted in round 1 instead of on day two of the draft. In addition to being huge failure as the 8th overall pick, he was a turd of a human being. He is not accountable for anything he does, whether it is poor play on the field, his off field issues or just the garbage that comes out of his mouth. It's one thing to predict playoffs or tell everyone that Torrell Troup is better than Ndamukong Suh....but to throw the idiots that drafted you and unjustifiably made you rich beyond your wildest dreams under the bus was inexcusable. It's just not something a man should ever do.

 

I don't begrudge him any success elsewhere, really couldn't care less about his wins and losses, football is a team sport. But personally, he deserves what he got by being isolated and picked on in the Super Bowl. The Pro Bowl, I couldn't care less about. I think Mark Kelso made the Pro Bowl at least once and he was basically a punt shagger in the secondary. Good teams expose the weaknesses of other good teams. Donte was not a good SS this year, but having a DE with 20 sacks covers up flaws in deep coverage against lesser teams. He couldn't be hidden on Sunday and it was ugly.

[apuszczalowski]

Stevie Johnson could copy Dontes posts and use them as his own, and fans would be praising him for saying it and talking about how great he is, yet they come out of Whitners twitter account and everyone slams him for saying anything all because he wasn't Ngata and wasn't drafted in teh right spot according to how they feel he should have.

 

He wasn't the reason why SF lost that Superbowl. He wouldn't have been the reason they won't it either, and didn't help them out much, but the team as a whole played a bad game at the worst time. He wasn't on the field when they allowed the longest return kickoff return in SB history. He wasn't dropping catches that the WRs on the Ravens were making with ease, he wasn't part of an offence that struggled to get anything going for an entire first half until the lights went out.

 

The only people I hear complaining about him, his play, and saying he won't be part of the team next year are bills fans who are stilling throwing their tantrums because he was taken over Ngata over 6 years ago.

[The Senator]

Just days after the SB Ex Bill Donte Whitner is back at it, runnin his mouth ..

 

He is predicting that "each year the 49ers take a step up & that next year they will win it all"

.

.

 

I don't see how that's possible, since the Bills are goin'...

 

 

19 and 0 baby!!!!

 

GO BILLSSS!!!!

[Dante]

Burned twice in SB XLV

 

Agree the Niners will be back next year. However most "experts" have said they need to fix the secondary to step up.

Wasn't it Culliver that stunk the place out on those two punts, er I mean hail mary passes Flacco threw?

[peterpan]

If the 9ers had a safety who could cover, they would have won it THIS year!

 

Wake up Donte! You are a weakness on that team!!!!

[QCity]

The only people I hear complaining about him, his play, and saying he won't be part of the team next year are bills fans who are stilling throwing their tantrums because he was taken over Ngata over 6 years ago.

 

Maybe you live in some sort of TBD vacuum? Turn on ESPN, NFL Network, any SF forum, etc, etc and there's a large amount of criticism for his play in the 1st half (he was laughably terrible and repeatedly caught out of position or smoked while pinching up). Sell your Whitner jersey on Ebay and give it up already....

[Orton's Arm]

Stevie Johnson could copy Dontes posts and use them as his own, and fans would be praising him for saying it and talking about how great he is, yet they come out of Whitners twitter account and everyone slams him for saying anything all because he wasn't Ngata and wasn't drafted in teh right spot according to how they feel he should have.

 

He wasn't the reason why SF lost that Superbowl. He wouldn't have been the reason they won't it either, and didn't help them out much, but the team as a whole played a bad game at the worst time. He wasn't on the field when they allowed the longest return kickoff return in SB history. He wasn't dropping catches that the WRs on the Ravens were making with ease, he wasn't part of an offence that struggled to get anything going for an entire first half until the lights went out.

 

The only people I hear complaining about him, his play, and saying he won't be part of the team next year are bills fans who are stilling throwing their tantrums because he was taken over Ngata over 6 years ago.

 

> He wasn't the reason why SF lost that Superbowl.

 

It's a mistake to try to identify any one thing as the reason the 49ers lost the Super Bowl. After any close loss, a team can point to any number of things which, had they gone differently, would have resulted in a win. That is what you are doing in your post.

 

That said, if the 49ers had received average quality play from the SS position, there is little doubt they would have won.

[H2o]

Just days after the SB Ex Bill Donte Whitner is back at it, runnin his mouth ..

 

He is predicting that "each year the 49ers take a step up & that next year they will win it all"

 

Although it is good to have the confidence in your team mates to carry you to a SB as was pointed out in the article it is hard to go to the big game 2 years in a row & that it hasn't been done since the Pats went back to back .

 

So good luck with that Donte we will all be waiting to see if your actions can cash in on what your mouth is saying ...

 

Whitner was solely responsible for giving up two TD's and it was questionable as to whether he was supposed to be the over the top help on the Jacoby Jones reception. In actuality Whitner cost his team the SB this year. Good job Donte.

[JohnC]

Bills fans are going to spend a lot of time thinking about disappointment, for the same reason that Eskimos spend a lot of time thinking about snow. Over the last 10 - 15 years, the Bills have been surrounded by constant disappointments, wasted opportunities, and the hollow, empty fruits of short-sighted thinking.

 

Whitner represented the second-highest draft pick the Bills have had in the last 20+ years. The highest was Mike Williams. But at least with Mike Williams there was closure. He was a bust, everyone here agrees he was a bust, his post-Buffalo words and deeds were about what you'd expect from a busted player trying (mostly unsuccessfully) to work his way back into the NFL.

 

Whitner, on the other hand, has been a source of irritation ever since the decision to pick him was first announced. First, because it was an early signal that we couldn't trust the Levy/Jauron regime to use their most valuable resources effectively. Second, because he was a glaringly obvious reach. Third, because many people on this board defended the pick at the time, and continued to defend the player long after it became clear that the 8th overall pick used on him had been squandered. Fourth, because his personality is annoying. I can't recall his having said or done anything which would suggest humility. Everything with him is showy. The big, showy hit, but without wrapping up the guy he's supposed to be tackling. Big talk on Twitter, not backed up by subsequent deeds. The domestic incident at his home. His run-in with police. Nothing about his personality makes me like him or want to spend money rooting for him.

 

Once Whitner hit free agency, GMs' lack of interest in him should have shown fans that he was a below-average safety; not the top-15 safety they'd claimed. But then another source of irritation happened: he made the Pro Bowl. Had he made the Pro Bowl by playing at a Pro Bowl level, I'd be perfectly fine with it. But no. We all saw the kind of safety he is in the Super Bowl. He made the Pro Bowl because of a few big highlight reel hits, his draft position, and because he was surrounded by a talented defense which helped mask the 49ers' weakness at SS.

 

For there to be closure with Whitner, there needs to be a general consensus on the following:

• Picking him in the top-15 of the draft was a boneheaded move. Well-run teams realized this at the time that stupid decision was made.
  
• Whitner was, is, and will continue to be a below-average safety best suited to a backup role.
  
• His Pro Bowl invitation is a joke, and serves to de-legitimize the Pro Bowl selection process.
  

If we on these boards can agree on those three things, it will be much easier to move past the embarrassment of the Whitner selection, and move on to other things. I would also like to see the front office do something positive--like obtain a franchise quarterback--so that we can focus on that, instead of on the idiocy of the Whitner selection.

 

There is no need to do an in depth analysis of the Whitner pick in order to learn from it. The Whitner pick was beyond being an abusrd pick----it was simply a laughable pick. The regime that brought him into the fold also doesn't require much of an analysis. It was a reflection of the weird owner's out of touch knowledge of not only the NFL but of the game of football. While some old people like to play card games the rich baron owner from Michigan preferred to tinker with his toy franchise.

 

I don't understand the hostility towards Whitner. He is a loudmouth who overrates his abilities. So what! Stevie Johnson is also a loudmouth who overrates his abilities. I think a lot of people are resentful that Whitner is a former failed high draft choice player (among many) who escaped from the shackles of a hollow and irrelevant franchise. How many of the other mediocre players on the losing Bills would love to be in Whitner's winning shoes? You don't think that Spiller or Wood would prefer playing for the well run west coast franchise compared to the Gomer Pyle run franchise they have the misfortune to be stuck in?

 

I can understand why fans don't like players such as Moss and T.O. They have traits that make them unlikeable yet they are consequential players. Instead of focusing on former inconsequential players who are in a better situation there needs to be more emphasis placed on uplifting oneself and less attention paid to denigrating others who no longer have anything to do with you.

 

For whatever faults Whitner had when he played with the Bills he gave maximum effort and exhibited some spirit when he played. That certainly is better than watching a lot of games last year when it was obvious that a number of players simply didn't care and quit. It got to the point that even the HC had little spirit left in him.

Edited February 8, 2013 by JohnC

[Orton's Arm]

There is no need to do an in depth analysis of the Whitner pick in order to learn from it. The Whitner pick was beyond being an abusrd pick----it was simply a laughable pick. The regime that brought him into the fold also doesn't require much of an analysis. It was a reflection of the weird owner's out of touch knowledge of not only the NFL but of the game of football. While some old people like to play card games the rich baron owner from Michigan preferred to tinker with his toy franchise.

 

I don't understand the hostility towards Whitner. He is a loudmouth who overrates his abilities. So what! Stevie Johnson is also a loudmouth who overrates his abilities. I think a lot of people are resentful that Whitner is a former failed high draft choice player (among many) who escaped from the shackles of a hollow and irrelevant franchise. How many of the other mediocre players on the losing Bills would love to be in Whitner's winning shoes? You don't think that Spiller or Wood would prefer playing for the well run west coast franchise compared to the Gomer Pyle run franchise they have the misfortune to be stuck in?

 

I can understand why fans don't like players such as Moss and T.O. They have traits that make them unlikeable yet they are consequential players. Instead of focusing on former inconsequential players who are in a better situation there needs to be more emphasis placed on uplifting oneself and less attention paid to denigrating others who no longer have anything to do with you.

 

For whatever faults Whitner had when he played with the Bills he gave maximum effort and exhibited some spirit when he played. That certainly is better than watching a lot of games last year when it was obvious that a number of players simply didn't care and quit. It got to the point that even the HC had little spirit left in him.

 

The Mike Williams pick was the sort of error a large portion of the fanbase would have made. The Donte Whitner pick was the kind of mistake the fanbase would have avoided. By this I mean that, going into the 2006 draft, no one here (that I recall) had advocated the Bills selecting Whitner 8th overall. After the Whitner pick was made, a significant portion of the people here became defenders of the decision. Long after those people stopped defending the absurdity of the pick, they still continued to defend him as a player. (And grossly overstated his level of play in the process.) You and I are on the same page regarding the stupidity of his draft selection. Bill from NYC's gut-level reaction to the pick was completely and abundantly justified.

 

As for the hostility directed against him: I cannot think of one aspect of his personality which makes me want to like him. Not one.

 

I don't agree with your comparison between Whitner's and Stevie Johnson's personalities. Johnson waits until after he's done something substantial before celebrating. Usually his celebrations are done in a jovial, lighthearted way.

 

Whitner, on the other hand, has been a source of empty hype ever since he was drafted. Some of that hype came from the people who drafted him--people who expressed confidence he'd live up to his draft position. (And who later scoffed at the notion he'd been a reach.) Some of that hype came from his supporters here on these boards. But a lot of it came from Whitner himself.

 

After Stevie Johnson dropped the game-winning touchdown against Pittsburgh, he seemed heartbroken. But after Whitner's putrid play cost his team a Super Bowl ring, did he take personal responsibility for the loss? No. Did he say, "It really hurts me to know that I let my teammates down in such a big game"? No. Instead, he went back to his usual hype mode, and almost immediately began writing checks his teammates would have to cash. Time will tell if his guarantees of a Super Bowl win for the 49ers will have more validity than his guarantee of a playoff appearance for the Bills. But boasts about future performance--either about his own or his team's--were not what was called for in that situation.

 

Like Whitner, Ryan Fitzpatrick has also attracted his share of empty hype, and his share of supporters who greatly overrate his ability. But I can't once recall Fitzpatrick having said anything to contribute to that empty hype. No matter how frustrated I may become with Fitzpatrick's supporters, none of that frustration spills over onto him personally. While Fitzpatrick may lack the talent to ever be an average starting QB in the NFL, his personality is much more likeable than Whitner's.

[JohnC]

The Mike Williams pick was the sort of error a large portion of the fanbase would have made. The Donte Whitner pick was the kind of mistake the fanbase would have avoided. By this I mean that, going into the 2006 draft, no one here (that I recall) had advocated the Bills selecting Whitner 8th overall. After the Whitner pick was made, a significant portion of the people here became defenders of the decision. Long after those people stopped defending the absurdity of the pick, they still continued to defend him as a player. (And grossly overstated his level of play in the process.) You and I are on the same page regarding the stupidity of his draft selection. Bill from NYC's gut-level reaction to the pick was completely and abundantly justified.

 

As for the hostility directed against him: I cannot think of one aspect of his personality which makes me want to like him. Not one.

 

I don't agree with your comparison between Whitner's and Stevie Johnson's personalities. Johnson waits until after he's done something substantial before celebrating. Usually his celebrations are done in a jovial, lighthearted way.

 

Whitner, on the other hand, has been a source of empty hype ever since he was drafted. Some of that hype came from the people who drafted him--people who expressed confidence he'd live up to his draft position. (And who later scoffed at the notion he'd been a reach.) Some of that hype came from his supporters here on these boards. But a lot of it came from Whitner himself.

 

After Stevie Johnson dropped the game-winning touchdown against Pittsburgh, he seemed heartbroken. But after Whitner's putrid play cost his team a Super Bowl ring, did he take personal responsibility for the loss? No. Did he say, "It really hurts me to know that I let my teammates down in such a big game"? No. Instead, he went back to his usual hype mode, and almost immediately began writing checks his teammates would have to cash. Time will tell if his guarantees of a Super Bowl win for the 49ers will have more validity than his guarantee of a playoff appearance for the Bills. But boasts about future performance--either about his own or his team's--were not what was called for in that situation.

 

I recall two seasons ago that Stevie Johnson was warned in advance by the HC not to exhibit behavior on the field that would cause his team to be penalized. So what does he do? He choreographs a borish self-centered act after a TD reception that penalizes the team. The HC then benched him for the rest of the game. My point is that Whitner is a self-centered talker just as a lot of other players are. Whitner has an inflated sense of himself as a player, just as Stevie the second rate showman has of himself. There isn't a player who pouts more on the field and shows up his own qb than he does. For me his petulant act has gone stale a long time ago. He is a mediocre number #1 receiver who is acutally a solid #2 receiver. In other words he isn't as good as he thinks he is. The criticism you have of Whitner i.e. an inflated sense of himself as a player also applys to SJ.

 

Like Whitner, Ryan Fitzpatrick has also attracted his share of empty hype, and his share of supporters who greatly overrate his ability. But I can't once recall Fitzpatrick having said anything to contribute to that empty hype. No matter how frustrated I may become with Fitzpatrick's supporters, none of that frustration spills over onto him personally. While Fitzpatrick may lack the talent to ever be an average starting QB in the NFL, his personality is much more likeable than Whitner's.

 

There is no doubt that Fitz is a more likeable player and respected person. So what? Why is such an inconsequential player like Whitner worthy of so much scathing commentary? He is no longer associated with the team; he hasn't been for quite some time. I simply find it curious that so much attention and resentment is paid to mediocre players on other teams when there is so much fodder on this losing hometown roster that should keep one busy commenting on.

 

Again, I will go back to one of my original points that the both of us are in agreement on: The Whitner selection was beyond being a bad pick---it was a ludicrous pick made by incompetents working in an organization that has a rich history of repeating its odd behavior. Donte Whitner is simply not worth the attention. Although he represents everything that is wrong with this absurd franchise he is ancient history. He should be left alone.

Edited February 8, 2013 by JohnC

[Sisyphean Bills]

I recall two seasons ago that Stevie Johnson was warned in advance by the HC not to exhibit behavior on the field that would cause his team to be penalized. So what does he do? He choreographs a borish self-centered act after a TD reception that penalizes the team. The HC then benched him for the rest of the game. My point is that Whitner is a self-centered talker just as a lot of other players are. Whitner has an inflated sense of himself as a player, just as Stevie the second rate showman has of himself. There isn't a player who pouts more on the field and shows up his own qb than he does. For me his petulant act has gone stale a long time ago. He is a mediocre number #1 receiver who is acutally a solid #2 receiver. In other words he isn't as good as he thinks he is. The criticism you have of Whitner i.e. an inflated sense of himself as a player also applys to SJ.

 

 

 

There is no doubt that Fitz is a more likeable player and respected person. So what? Why is such an inconsequential player like Whitner worthy of so much scathing commentary? He is no longer associated with the team; he hasn't been for quite some time. I simply find it curious that so much attention and resentment is paid to mediocre players on other teams when there is so much fodder on this losing hometown roster that should keep one busy commenting on.

 

Again, I will go back to one of my original points that the both of us are in agreement on: The Whitner selection was beyond being a bad pick---it was a ludicrous pick made by incompetents working in an organization that has a rich history of repeating its odd behavior. Donte Whitner is simply not worth the attention. Although he represents everything that is wrong with this absurd franchise he is ancient history. He should be left alone.

Are you sure that he wants to be left alone? He was the one blasting the Bills regime in interviews. Not the action of someone that's moved on and wants to forget.

[C.Biscuit97]

A confident football player? How dare he. Dude got roasted in the SB but he still has been a very good player for SF. some of you just reek of hate.

[RuntheDamnBall]

A confident football player? How dare he. Dude got roasted in the SB but he still has been a very good player for SF. some of you just reek of hate.

He has been the same player he was in Buffalo - nothing more, nothing less. It's his cast and his coaches that are making a difference.

 

Even his superior teammates and coaches cannot compensate for a guy with middling coverage skills matched up against an athletic TE or a WR with moves.

 

I don't care if he's confident. It's just that most of us would shut up and get back to work if we got roasted in the SB instead of talking about how we're a step away from greatness. One can be quietly confident (see J. Rice, B. Sanders, J. Flacco).

[BuffBill]

A confident football player? How dare he. Dude got roasted in the SB but he still has been a very good player for SF. some of you just reek of hate.

I agree, he had a bad first half, as did the entire S.F. roster. Jealous fans period.