Offensive co-captain and left tackle Andrew Whitworth confirmed his one-year extension Monday, but he didn't say just yet he's ready to play beyond 2016 and his 35th birthday.
"The risk of playing football, all the things that go into being a father and husband, all those things go into it," said Whitworth, a father of four children. "If there's more football after that, we'll find out."
Whitworth reiterated what he said this spring. He'd like to retire as a Bengal. And he wants to win a Super Bowl here. "I'm invested here," he said, and he said it never crossed his mind to play for another team.
"That never added up to me,' he said.
Cincinnati Bengals take on the Baltimore Ravens in week 3 of the regular season 09/27/2015
"I want Andy Dalton and A.J. Green and Adam Jones and all these guys in this locker room to have an opportunity to win a Super Bowl and all of us to win a Super Bowl together. That's the biggest factor for me," Whitworth said. "The biggest triumphs I've had, it's not on the field, it's the individual guys in this locker room. I know what I've been for that guy. I know how many times he's told me that. I know the way they respect and honor me. To me that's the most important thing and always will be."
He also revealed that in 2013 he had the option to have season-ending knee surgery before the season, but chose to play and miss only two games.
"I basically played on one leg with a patella that was in terrible shape," Whitworth said. "I did that because these guys mean so much to me."
In Sunday's game at Paul Brown Stadium against the Chiefs (1 p.m.-Cincinnati's Channel 12), Whitworth plays in his 140th game, tying Bengals radio analyst Dave Lapham for eighth place among games played by Bengals offensive lineman.
If he plays all the way, he'll also pass Rich Braham (146) and then next year it would be Bob Johnson (154), Max Montoya (157) and Joe Walter (166). The three left are Hall-of Famer Anthony Munoz (185), Willie Anderson (181), and Bruce Kozerski (172).
