By Tim Graham
I thought San Francisco 49ers safety Donte Whitner had been awfully quiet this week.
The former Buffalo Bills safety has been quoted innocuously here and there about Sunday's game in Candlestick Park. The local media requested Whitner for our weekly conference call -- NFL reporters get to speak with an opposing player every Wednesday -- and he wasn't available.
In a San Francisco Chronicle blog headlined "Whitner has not-so-fond memories of his time in Buffalo," the 2006 first-round draft choice took aim at the Bills' front office and coaching staff.
"Their backs are against the wall, knowing those guys," Whitner said of the players. "They're always going to want to go out there and work hard and want to do the right things, but sometimes it doesn't go that way.
"Sometimes it's bigger than just the players on the football field. I say that because a lot of guys go out there and pour their heart into it and you never win.
"You never go out there and feel like you're in control of the football games, and I think that comes from coaching. I think that comes from upstairs, and I think that comes from just getting the right players in place. A lot of times when I was there, we struggled a lot. We wanted to win football games. We went out there and did everything they asked us to do and it didn’t happen."
