On Friday I decided to change-up my twitter avatar, which got me searching through 49ers OTA photos. I came across this picture of Donte Whitner and decided to make it my "twitcon".

That got me thinking of how much I like Whitner and why: He's fearless and brutal on the field. The same can be said for the entire defense and the way they play. Let's recall a few moments of the 2011 season that illustrate this.

The one most people remember, and a play that we talked about on twitter Friday, was the huge hit Whitner put on Pierre Thomas near the goal-line in the playoff game vs. the Saints. Not only did he K.O. Thomas, but he immediately got up and walked off the field, LIKE A BOSS!

If you're not familiar with the phrase "LIKE A BOSS", here is a link to the Lonely Island video.

After the jump we'll post the video to that play.

This is the kind of killer instinct the entire defense shows all game long. We all remember this next play, too. Justin Smith pushes Jermon Bushrod back into Drew Brees AND grabs the QB by the jersey, dragging him to the ground at the same time, LIKE A BOSS!

Here's another example of exacting punishment on the opponent in order to make them think twice about coming into your area: Dashon Goldson jacks-up Mike Williams and causes a fumble, LIKE A BOSS!

There are many more like this. I can think of another Whitner play where he came in to tackle a running back who was mostly stopped short, but he grabbed him by the leg and I think if the whistle hadn't blown he might have torn the leg off.

I'm not advocating injury, just saying these guys are stone-cold and play to the whistle. I'd be more worried about getting injured vs. our defense than playing any Gregg Williams bountfified defense and I think New Orleans learned that, too.

Here is a defensive highlight reel from last season just to get your blood really pumping.