In 2013, in a game against the St. Louis Rams, Whitner was fined for a hit on receiver Chris Givens. In response to the fine, he indicated that he would be legally changing his last name from "Whitner" to "Hitner", dropping the "W" from his surname.
In 2013, during a game against the St. Louis Rams, Whitner was penalized for hitting receiver Chris Givens. He announced that he would legally rename himself from "Whitner" to "Hitner", omitting the first letter.