It looked for a time last season like safety Donte Whitner was going to legally change his name to Hitner to capitalize on his reputation as a big hitter, but Whitner ultimately opted not to go forward with the court hearing needed to officially make the change.
Whitner moved from the 49ers to the Browns this offseason and was asked about the reason why he signed the name Whitner to his new contract on the second day of the team’s minicamp on Wednesday. Whitner said he spoke to Chad Johnson, who was once known as Chad Ochocinco and told Whitner that there’s a lot of hassle involving changing legal documents that comes with a shift in identity.
“All for one letter change?” Whitner said, via ESPN.com. “I’d rather not.”
Whitner laughed when it was suggested he could just tell people that the first letter in his last name is silent, but it seems we’ll all have to wait longer to get an authentic NFL jersey with “Hitner” on the back.