A key player on Bengals line since rookie season, Whitworth is among the team’s strongest locker room leaders ... Capped 2012 with Pro Bowl selection ... Played his fourth straight season in starting LT role ... Helped RB BenJarvus Green-Ellis lead NFL in third-and-one rushing conversions (14), with Green-Ellis failing to convert only once ... Part of run-blocking effort for Green-Ellis to gain at least 100 yards four times in a five-game stretch (Games 10-12 and 14), with 168.2 team average in that span ... Has started 67 consecutive Bengals games (regular season and postseason), longest streak on current team ... His 102 career regular-season starts include 77 at T and 25 at G ... Has played in every game in six of his seven NFL seasons.
A key player on Bengals line since rookie season, Whitworth is among the team’s strongest locker room leaders ... Capped 2012 with Pro Bowl selection ... Played his fourth straight season in starting LT role ... Helped RB BenJarvus Green-Ellis lead NFL in third-and-one rushing conversions (14), with Green-Ellis failing to convert only once ... Part of run-blocking effort for Green-Ellis to gain at least 100 yards four times in a five-game stretch (Games 10-12 and 14), with 168.2 team average in that span ... Has started 67 consecutive Bengals games (regular season and postseason), longest streak on current team ... His 102 career regular-season starts include 77 at T and 25 at G ... Has played in every game in six of his seven NFL seasons.
CAREER TRANSACTIONS: Selected by Bengals in second round of 2006 NFL Draft (55th overall) ... Signed with Bengals on 7-29-06 ... Signed contract extension with Bengals on 7-27-08 ... Signed contract extension with Bengals on 8-31-11 (through 2015).
PRO BOWL PARTICIPATION: Has played in one Pro Bowl ... Played in 2012 season game at Honolulu.
2012 GENERAL: One of 10 Bengals to start all 16 games, and also started Wild Card playoff ... Helped RB BenJarvus Green-Ellis post a lead of one (14-13) over Houston’s Arian Foster in third-and-one rushing conversions, and Green-Ellis had only 15 attempts to Foster’s 19.
2012 GAME-BY-GAME: Helped blocking effort Sept. 16 vs. Cleveland for offensive output that netted 375 yards and 34 points ... Supported blocking effort Sept. 23 at Washington that netted season highs in yards (478) and points (38) ... Contributed to 382-yard output Sept. 30 at Jacksonville while allowing no sacks ... Supported blocking effort Oct. 14 at Cleveland that paved way for 438 yards ... Helped offense allow no sacks in Nov. 11 win vs. N.Y. Giants that launched team’s second-half surge ... Supported 189 team rushing yards Nov. 18 at Kansas City ... Supported season-best 221 rushing yards Nov. 25 vs. Kansas City, but was ejected in fourth quarter for unnecessary roughness in an incident that also saw two Raiders ejected ... Supported third straight 100-yard rushing game for BenJarvus Green-Ellis (25-118) Dec. 2 at San Diego and helped in protection allowing only one sack ... Helped support blocking effort Dec. 9 vs. Dallas for team’s 146 yards net rushing ... In Thursday night win Dec. 13 at Philadelphia, aided rushing effort of 41-for-157 (3.8) and season-best 37:40 possession time, with Green-Ellis (106) becoming only second player in team history to get four 100-yard rushing totals in span of five games.
HE SCORES: On Dec. 12, 2010 at Pittsburgh, Whitworth had his first career reception — for a one-yard TD after lining up as an eligible receiver. His score gave Cincinnati a 7-0 first-quarter lead. He became the first Bengals offensive lineman to score a TD since T Melvin Tuten vs. Jacksonville in 1995, also on a pass reception.
PREVIOUS SEASONS: 2006 - Veterans’ injuries opened the door for rookie to make 12 starts among his 16 games played ... Made 10 of his 12 starts at LT, replacing Levi Jones ... Made first pro start in his second game, Sept. 17 vs. Cleveland, starting at LG ... On Nov. 12 vs. San Diego, helped offense produce season-high 545 yards and career-high 440 yards passing from Carson Palmer.
2007 - Played 1041 of team’s 1047 offensive snaps (99.4 percent) as Bengals set club record for fewest sacks allowed (17) ... Started at LT in Games 1-3, replacing injured Levi Jones ... When injured RT Willie Anderson left the starting lineup in Game 4, LG Stacy Andrews replaced Anderson, and Whitworth replaced Andrews at LG, starting Games 4-16 ... Recovered a Carson Palmer fumble to preserve FG drive in victory Nov. 11 at Baltimore.
2008 - Started Games 1-10 at LG, but suffered ankle injury in third quarter of Game 10, Nov. 16 vs. Philadelphia ... Placed on Reserve/Injured list on Nov. 28.
2009 - Voted by teammates as a team captain, and started all 16 games and Wild Card playoff at LT ... Helped team to record of eight games with a 100-yard rusher, including individual club mark of six by Cedric Benson ... On Oct. 11 at Baltimore, helped limit Ravens to one sack while helping Benson (27-for-120) become first player in 40 games to rush for 100 yards against Baltimore ... Supported Benson’s career-high 189 rushing yards Oct. 25 vs. Chicago, while also aiding a sack-free performance up front ... Supported Benson for Bengals postseason-record 169 rushing yards in Wild Card playoff on 1-9-10 vs. N.Y. Jets.
2010 - Started all 16 games at LT ... Helped Cincinnati offense rank second in AFC and sixth in NFL in fewest sacks allowed per passing play (one every 22.07 passing plays) ... Aided offensive outputs of 469 yards Oct. 24 at Atlanta and 413 yards Oct. 3 at Cleveland ... Aided 38:03 possession time and 188-yard team rushing output Dec. 19 vs. Cleveland, both season bests ... Supported 371-net yard performance with no sacks allowed in win Dec. 26 vs. San Diego.
2011 - Started at LT in every game, including Wild Card playoff, one of seven Bengals to do so ... On Sept. 11 at Cleveland, aided blocking effort that helped produce Cedric Benson’s 121-yard rushing performance ... Helped team rush 32-for-171 (5.3 average) Oct. 2 vs. Buffalo, including 104 yards for Benson ... On Oct. 16 vs. Indianapolis, supported pass-protection effort that held Colts for the first time in season without a sack, playing primarily against standout DE Dwight Freeney ... Helped lead 483-yard blocking effort Nov. 20 at Baltimore ... On Nov. 27 vs. Cleveland, helped lead protection effort for 389 yards of total offense, including 106 rushing yards by Benson ... Aided 165-yard rushing output Dec. 24 vs. Arizona.
COLLEGE: A pillar of the LSU line from 2002-05, Whitworth never missed a game or a practice due to injury ... Closed career with the second-most starts (52) in NCAA Division I annals ... Played primarily LT and was credited with no sacks allowed as a senior and only one as a junior ... Earned All-SEC first-team honors as both a junior and senior, including consensus nod as a senior ... Second-team All-America choice by Walter Camp Foundation as a senior, and third-team All-America by Associated Press ... Started every game as a sophomore in 2003 as LSU won BCS national championship with 13-1 mark ... Spent five years at LSU, including 2001 redshirt season.
PERSONAL: Hometown is West Monroe, La. ... At West Monroe High School, was rated by CNNSI.com as sixth-best offensive line prospect in the nation ... Led West Monroe to three Class 5A state football titles, as a freshman, sophomore and senior ... Graduated from LSU in December 2005 with a degree in general studies ... Former junior tennis champion in Louisiana, and is also an excellent golfer ... Married (wife Melissa), with three children (twins Sarah and Drew, and Michael) ... Has launched the BigWhit 77 Foundation to aid in community service efforts ... Hosts a fundraising golf tournament in Louisiana, and enjoys serving as a motivational speaker to youth groups, and is a leader in Bengals community service efforts ... Favorite hobby is golf.
