by By Chick Ludwig Staff Writer By Chick Ludwig Staff Writer , Dayton Daily News

After spending most of his three seasons at left guard, Whitworth is back where he belongs - at left tackle, protecting quarterback Carson Palmer's blind side.

"Left tackle is a position that you have one of your elite players play," Whitworth said during a break at minicamp, which concludes today, June 20, at Paul Brown Stadium. "That's the position I want to take the responsibility of playing, and playing well."

Whitworth entered the NFL in 2006 as a second-round draft pick out of LSU, where he was a pillar of the Tigers' line at left tackle from 2002-05. Of his 38 NFL starts, 13 have come at left tackle for the often-injured Levi Jones, whose release in May cleared a path for Whitworth to return "home."

Head coach Marvin Lewis and offensive line coach Paul Alexander didn't hesitate in naming Whitworth the starter. With each repetition, the big fellow gets more comfortable and confident.

"It's a chance for me to just solidly work at that spot and have one focus," he said. Off the field, Whitworth's a gentle giant. On the field, he has a mean streak. He became an instant folk hero in the Bengals' 21-19 victory over Jacksonville on Nov. 2, 2008, when he retaliated against Jaguars defensive tackle John Henderson, who pulled off Whitworth's helmet after a heated blocking exchange and attempted to gouge Whitworth's eyes.

Both players were ejected for fighting at 2:14 of the third quarter. At that moment, a leader was born for the Bengals .

"The thing about your left tackle is you've got to trust that guy completely," Alexander said. "I don't think people recognize just how good of an athlete he is. He's a great athlete. He has tremendous hand-eye coordination, balance, smarts, and he's tougher than nails."

CINCINNATI - Bengals rookie tight end Chase Coffman finally gets to chase his dream.

His injured left foot has healed sufficiently enough to allow his participation in minicamp this weekend.

"My foot's still not 100 percent, but it's more than great to get back out here and start doing stuff again," Coffman said. "These are my first couple of practices. There's still a lot of stuff I need to crispen up and just make smoother. But for the most part, I'm getting the offense down and I'm excited to keep learning."

The son of former Green Bay Packers tight end Paul Coffman earned the 2008 Mackey Award as the nation's top tight end after 90 receptions for 987 yards and 10 TDs for the Missouri Tigers.

But he fractured the fifth metatarsal in his left foot on Missouri's final offensive play in the Alamo Bowl. Nevertheless, the Bengals grabbed him in the third round (No. 98 overall).

Rock steady

Safety Chinedum Ndukwe likes what he sees from the defense.

"We've got some solid guys from the top down - corners, safeties, linebackers, everybody," he said. "We've done a pretty good job this offseason just trying to get right."

Tattoo parlor

Second-year wide receiver Jerome Simpson added tattoos to both arms this offseason.

"Reidsville, N.C." - his hometown - is etched on his left arm. On the inside of his right biceps is this inscription: "Keep The Faith."

"Just little things to remind me, when I feel down, to keep working," Simpson said. "Like my grandma always tells me, 'Keep the faith.' "

Steely smile

Right guard Bobbie Williams finally decided to get braces - at age 32.

"My children say I look like a teenager," he said. "So I feel young."

Quote machine

"He's a lot better in coverage than (draft experts) said he was. This guy can play three downs. Plus, he can blitz. There's been nothing that I've seen out of him that we didn't expect." - Mike Zimmer, defensive coordinator, on rookie linebacker Rey Maualuga.

Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2253 or cludwig@DaytonDailyNews.com

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