Tampa, Florida- Kellen Winslow walked into his first post OTA (Organized Team Activities) interview this week with purpose.

"It's my second chance. So everything I learned in Cleveland, good and bad, you know, I'm taking it here."

That's why Winslow was more happy to address his recent absences due to family matters. All seemingly easy to forget for his team- as soon as he hit the field.

"He's just an impressive looking guy," says Bucs' Head Coach Raheem Morris. "When he's here at work, he's working. There's no doubt about that. So he's here, We're happy for him to be here. I'm just happy to see him grow within the offense, see what he can do."

This tight-end friendly offense isn't the only attraction for Winslow. The other seal on this deal is his opinion of Bucs' head coach Raheem Morris.

"I don't like him. I love him. Just everything about him. He's always on me and I can't imagine playing for anybody else. This guy just gets us going and I can't wait to start."

Already immersed in the playbook from attending March's mini-camp, Winslow says he wishes the season started tomorrow.

"Whoever gets open is going to get the ball. We're going to run the ball. That's going to be our scheme. I'm just going to try and do my piece for the puzzle and make plays."

(wtsp.com)

Buccaneers TE Kellen Winslow said he like the new offense offensive coordinator Jeff Jagodzinski has brought to the team. "It's a very simple offense and I like it because it's not too much in terms of volume of words. It's tight end friendly, it's running friendly and it's wide receiver friendly. Whoever gets open is going to be open and get the ball. We're also going to run the ball. I'm just going to do my best to be a piece of the puzzle and make plays," Winslow said.

(kffl.com)

Tight end Kellen Winslow, Jr., made good on his promise to arrive this week at OTAs. He's at One Buc Place today, presumably working out with the team and will meet with the media shortly. 

Practices were closed today, so it's hard to gage Winslow's level of participation. He opted not to attend the voluntary workouts the past two weeks in order to complete moving his family from San Diego.

Stay tuned....

(tampabay.com)

TAMPA - I volunteered to write this.

It's time, for the time being, to not worry about Kellen Winslow Jr. not showing up for voluntary workouts over at One Buc Place.

Yes, it's the second straight week "soldier" has been missing. Apparently, he is in the process of moving to Tampa from California.

Man, he better turn up next week rubbing his back from lugging all those sofas or asking, "Hey, anybody need boxes?"

What is this, Two Men and a Winslow?

But before Bucs fans who worry about Winslow start worrying all over again, note that he is expected to be at workouts next week.

Also note that Bucs coach Raheem Morris and general manager Mark Dominik seem perfectly fine with Winslow's absence, at least they were last week, when Dominik smiled and said, "We're OK, we're good."

Then again, what choice do they have?

But let's go back to a key word: voluntary.

These are voluntary workouts.

The Bucs are OK with Winslow, they're good.

Good enough for me.

I just hope Winslow doesn't move any motorcycles.

Guys miss workouts all the time. Barrett Ruud missed workouts last week. Earnest Graham has skipped them, too.
Granted, you would think that, in the name of first impressions, Winslow would volunteer to immediately show the pewter and jump right into working with his new quarterbacks, new coaches, new offense, what with all the money he got.

You'd also think that Winslow, who at his introductory news conference spoke of being misunderstood, would understand how his absence might also be misunderstood.

But this is not a federal case.

It's about perception more than anything else.

Me? I'm willing to wait and see.

I don't think Winslow missing these workouts is a sign of things to come. Things might still come, but it won't be because he missed these workouts. Remember a few years ago, when Michael Strahan hemmed and hawed about retirement, kicked back and missed Giants training camp? Tom Coughlin didn't blink very much. Then Strahan showed up.

Hey, didn't the Giants win the Super Bowl?

If Kellen Winslow Jr. shows up and works his tail off and goes out and catches 75 balls and makes touchdowns, none of this voluntary stuff is going to matter.

Come to think of it, it might not matter now.

(tbo.com)

Bucs fans, Kellen Winslow hears you.

The team's highest-profile offseason acquisition knows many have wondered what to make of his absence during the first week of voluntary offseason workouts. In an interview Monday, Winslow vowed to begin practicing with his new teammates next week at One Buc Place and was adamant that he is "working his butt off" to prepare for the upcoming season.

Winslow, acquired in a trade with the Browns in February, said his still-incomplete move to Tampa has been the primary reason for his absence last week and this week. He vowed to attend beginning May 26, when the Bucs begin a third week of OTAs (offseason team activities).

Winslow said he consulted with coach Raheem Morris beforehand and said ownership was made aware he would not attend the first five sessions of the offseason. Morris has expressed no concern nor has he addressed Winslow's absence specifically. He has said only that the absentees had all been in contact with the club.

Although Winslow isn't yet participating in team drills, he stressed that he is continuing his punishing personal workouts, something he does each offseason. He vowed to arrive in shape, ready to perform.

"Fans are going to have opinions, but if you know me, you now I'm working my butt off," Winslow said. "I live in San Diego. I want to be there, and I will be there."

The Bucs are implementing a new offense, one in which coordinator Jeff Jagodzinski has said Winslow will play a major role.

Winslow isn't oblivious to his public image. He knows there remain many who are skeptical about whether he has matured after youthful mistakes, especially in light of the Bucs' decision to sign him to a lucrative long-term contract that includes $20 million in guarantees.

"Fans have a right to feel the way they want," he said. But Winslow is quietly hoping a fresh start in Tampa will help him change attitudes. He's already trying to become part of the community with his June football camp, for which he says he will sponsor 150 kids from a local Boys and Girls Club (visit kellenwinslow80.com for information on the camp).

And Winslow addressed the subject of NFL Network commentator and former Tampa Bay defensive lineman Warren Sapp, who called out Winslow for his absence on the first day of OTAs a week ago.

Attending practice May 12, Sapp told reporters, "When your team fires up OTAs and you're not here, I guess you're being misunderstood again, right? Your past doesn't equal your future, but it will damn sure give me some reflection of what you might do. I'll leave it at that."

Winslow said he called Sapp later that day and explained the situation. According to Winslow, Sapp apologized and said he understood Winslow's position.

"We talked it out," Winslow said.

Asked to address projections that call for the Bucs to be losers in 2009, Winslow begged to differ.

"I can tell you Coach Morris is going to have everybody ready," he said. "I guarantee you that we'll be competitive on Sundays."

(sptimes.com)

Tampa Bay Buccaneers tight end Kellen Winslow Jr. will host a youth football camp at One Buccaneer Place from June 19-21.

The three-day camp is for football players ages 8-18 and includes coaching from Winslow Jr. and some of his Bucs teammates and Tampa Bay area high school coaches.

The cost of signing up for the Kellen Winslow Jr. Youth Football Camp is $175. Each participant will receive hours of coaching, lunch with a snack, a Kellen Winslow Jr. T-Shirt and an autographed picture.

To pre-register for the Kellen Winslow Jr. Youth Football Camp visit KellenWinslow.com. The deadline to register is June 10.

(pewterreport.com)

As we try to overcome our post-Celebrity Apprentice withdrawal, we’re starting to contemplate ninth-season candidates who would display Joan Rivers’ candid, feisty, tell-it-like-it-is style.

And we think we’ve found one:  Warren Sapp.

Sapp, who already became a reality star in 2007 on ABC’s Dancing With The Athletes And Washed-Up Celebrities, was visiting his old stomping grounds in Tampa on the first-day of “Organized Team Activities” (i.e., practice, as articulated by a government lawyer).  Coincidentally, tight end Kellen Winslow, who recently signed a new deal with more than $20 million in guaranteed money, wasn’t there.

“So when your team fires up OTA’s and you’re not here, I guess you’re being misunderstood again, right?” Sapp said, according to Rick Stroud of the St. Petersburg Times.  “Your past don’t equal your future, but it will damn sure give me some reflection of what you might do.  I’ll leave it at that.”

Quarterback Luke McCown was slightly more diplomatic.

“I don’t think so, not this early,” McCown said.  “Kellen is a professional, he’s a Pro Bowler, he knows how to get his body ready.  I talk with Kellen weekly and make sure we’re on the same page.”

Winslow has battled through a variety of injuries over the past several years.  A chronic knee problem first arose four years ago, after Winslow crashed a motorcycle while doing tricks in a Cleveland-area parking lot.

(profootballtalk.com)

4. Kellen Winslow, Buccaneers. After back-to-back 16-game, 80-catch seasons, Winslow was on the sideline again in '08, missing six games. His life will get better in Tampa. His unique combination of size, speed and athletic ability makes him a threat anywhere on the field, and offensive coordinator Jeff Jagodzinski plans to take full advantage. Don't be surprised to see Winslow lead the Bucs in receptions, yardage and touchdowns this year.

13. Greg Olsen, Bears. There was no sophomore slump in '08. He showed great improvement and became a playmaker, particularly in the red zone, posting five touchdowns. After failing in several attempts to upgrade the wide receiver corps, Olsen remains the Bears' best and most reliable option in the passing game. His statistics are sure to improve with QB Jay Cutler.

14. Jeremy Shockey, Saints. He is a disappointment since arriving from New York, but Saints coaches say Shockey is healthy and has been spending a lot of time working with QB Drew Brees. Shockey is athletic and a capable big-play threat when at full strength. If Billy Miller can catch 45 balls in this offense (he did last year), a healthy Shockey can give this team 75-plus catches.

(sportingnews.com)

Kellen Winslow was one player I could never figure out. He was a guy that showed up to play every single day and who laid it out on the line. He plays with a fire that makes you feel like he really cares deeply about winning. Yet, on other days he would be frustrating to watch with his inconsistency and lack of emotional control.

Unfortunately, Kellen did not play enough, or on a good enough team, to have the sort of effect Clevelanders thought he could have on the Browns.

When he is healthy he may still be one of the most gifted tight ends in the NFL. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers must think so; they just signed him to a long-term contract extension.

A six-year, $36.1-million deal to be exact.

I hear a lot of Browns fans talking about how the Buccaneers made a huge mistake by signing him. I'm one that thinks the Bucs will get the better end of the deal. Why? Because history shows us that many players or sports personalities who struggled to perform or fit in the city of Cleveland go onto have very good careers after the fact.

Here are 10 more people you may have heard of:
Ron Harper
Andre Miller
Brandon Phillips
Anthony Henry
Steve Kerr
Brian Giles
Charlie Manuel (World Series)
Bill Belichick (I don't even have to say it)
Antonio Bryant
Jeff Garcia

My point is, before people start calling Kellen Winslow overrated, let's wait a few years to see what he does in Tampa.

(examiner.com)

Recently acquired TE Kellen Winslow and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers have agreed on a six-year contract extension, according to Buccaneers.com.

NFL.com’s Steve Wyche reports that the deal is worth $36.1 million, with $20.1 million guaranteed. The deal could be worth up to $42.1 million with incentives.

The Bucs acquired Winslow from the Browns on Feb. 27 for a second-round pick in 2009 and a fifth-rounder in 2010.
New Bucs offensive coordinator Jeff Jagodzinski told the team’s website that he was impressed with what he saw after watching Winslow at voluntary workouts last week.

“Kellen does some things with matchups I think that we can get that are really going to benefit us this year,” Jagodzinski said.

“We can put him in different spots and move him around to get the matchup that we want. He can get in and out of a cut like a receiver, now. He’s good. He’s really good. I’m really looking forward to working with him and he’s been great. He’s been great out at practice, asking a lot of questions. (Tight ends coach) Alfredo (Roberts) had him in Cleveland already so he’s very familiar with him and how he works and how he needs to be coached. I’m excited about him. I came off the field and I said, ‘Man, we’ve got something good with him.’”

(nfl.com)

ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — The father-in-law of Tampa Bay Buccaneers tight end Kellen Winslow was found safe at a U.S.-Mexico border crossing on Saturday, three days after he vanished, police said.

Anaheim police were notified at about 9 a.m. Saturday that Enrique Guzman, who has Alzheimer's disease, was found at the Calexico border crossing, Anaheim police Sgt. Rick Martinez said.

The 67-year-old Guzman, of Montebello, was last seen Wednesday at an Anaheim gas station in his blue Chevy Camaro.

"It is our understanding that Mr. Guzman was returning to the United States from Mexico early this morning. While at the border crossing, he was displaying symptoms of confusion," Martinez said in a statement. "A computer check by United States Customs officials revealed that Mr. Guzman (and his vehicle) were listed as missing."

It was not immediately clear why Guzman had gone to Mexico, Martinez said in an e-mail.

Guzman appeared to be healthy. His daughter went to the border crossing and met him at about noon, Martinez said.

Winslow, a Pro Bowler in 2007, was a first-round draft pick out of Miami in 2004 by the Cleveland Browns. He was traded to Tampa Bay after last season.

(ap.com)

Coordinator Jeff Jagodzinski says Kellen Winslow will be a "big part" of the offense he's installing in Tampa Bay. "We can put him in different spots and move him around to get the matchup we want," Jags said. "He can get in and out of a cut like a receiver." Winslow will push Antonio Bryant hard to be Tampa Bay's leading receiver this year.

(rotoworld.com)

Some feared the worst when Bucs tight end Kellen Winslow, who has struggled with injuries throughout his career, did not participate in either of Tampa Bay's mini-camp practices at One Buccaneer Place on Wednesday.

But Bucs head coach Raheem Morris put those fears to rest this afternoon when asked about Winslow, stating that the Pro Bowl tight end that was acquired in a trade with Cleveland earlier this offseason simply opted not to participate in today's voluntary workouts.

"This is a voluntary deal," Morris said when asked about Winslow. "Guys are working. They practice when they can. Kellen didn't practice today. He attended and was great. He bounced around was listening attentively. He did everything he needed to do. He came to the meeting. He's been great since he's been here and very positive. I'm just happy he's here.

"It has nothing to do with health. It's a voluntary deal and Kellen didn't go today."

The Bucs traded a second-round pick in 2009 and a fifth-round selection in 2010 to Cleveland in exchange for Winslow, who has two years remaining on his contract. It is unclear whether Winslow will practice on Thursday.

(pewterreport.com)

After requesting a trade last year from the Cleveland Browns, tight end Kellen Winslow has finally had his wish granted. The Browns dealt the enigmatic tight end to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for a second-round pick in 2009 and a fifth-round choice in 2010. 

Winslow, who has a storied history of injuries and missed time, finds himself entering a rebuilding team that may be no closer to a Super Bowl berth than the Browns are. That may be the truth, but fantasy owners don't really care now do they? What we care about is how many passes Winslow will catch, how many touchdowns he'll score and what his fantasy value is.

Those questions are going to be tough to answer, but we'll try our best. For the Buccaneers, a plethora of familiar faces are no more, starting with the general manager and working down to veteran players. New faces have entered, but a few recognizable names still call Tampa home.

The supporting cast
The man expected to be tossing the rock to Winslow is quarterback Luke McCown; the Buccaneers re-signed him to a two-year contract. In his five-year career, McCown has started a mere seven games and has seen action in 12. The 6-foot-3, 212-pounder played collegiate football at Louisiana Tech. In his 12 appearances, he has compiled 1,617 passing yards, has thrown nine touchdowns and 10 interceptions. McCown has shown to possess modest accuracy as evidenced by his 59.7 percent completion rate. His most extensive experience came in 2007 for the Bucs, completing a very respectable 67.6 percent of his throws. He averaged 201.8 yards per game and hurled more touchdown passes (five) than interceptions (three). Barring some collapse during training camp or an injury, it appears as though he is the Bucs' starting quarterback.

At running back, the Buccaneers recently reached an agreement with free-agent running back Derrick Ward (New York Giants). He is expected to pair with Earnest Graham (ankle), who suffered a season-ending ankle injury that landed him on Injured Reserve in 2008.

Oft-injured tailback Cadillac Williams (knee) remains in the fold, but his durability issues have forced the Bucs to look elsewhere for regular production. He should be available to play a complementary role in 2009, and it wouldn't surprise us to see the Buccaneers model their backfield after the Giants' 2008 three-headed monster.

All things considered, Tampa Bay's ground game should be at the very least competent and as good as dynamic in '09.

Looking at the wide receiver position, the Buccaneers used their franchise tag on last year's breakout performer, Antonio Bryant. His 83 receptions for 1,248 yards and seven touchdown catches in 2008 led the team. Bryant was consistent and made spectacular catches throughout the year after sitting out the 2007 season without a team. However, he doesn't have much of a track record, and he didn't even find a home for the 2007 season.

Veteran receiver Michael Clayton re-signed with the team and is coming off his best season since his rookie year in 2004. It's no secret that Clayton hasn't lived up to his rookie season, having scored only twice since his seven-touchdown showing in '04.

Pass catcher Dexter M. Jackson is a speedy deep threat but struggled to make any noticeable contribution in 2008. The Appalachian State product was inactive from Week 8 through the rest of the season. He'll get a shot to contribute on offense this year, most likely as a slot receiver. The Bucs burned a second-round pick on him in 2008, so it's likely they will give him every shot to succeed.

Veteran wideouts Joey Galloway and Ike Hilliard were both released in the recent roster purge.

Tight end Jerramy Stevens, who is an unrestricted free agent and is unlikely to return, led the position for the Buccaneers in receptions (35) and yardage (385) while playing in 13 games.

Tight end Alex Smith played in 14 games. He recorded 21 receptions for 250 yards and led the position with three touchdowns for Tampa Bay.
Stevens and Smith combined for 94 total targets last year. By comparison, Winslow received 150 targets in 2007 alone!

Winslow's game
"K2," as he is known as, is a rangy, athletic, play-making tight end who relies on his smooth routes, impressive speed and soft hands to excel. He makes for a major mismatch against slower safeties and most linebackers.

Winslow is one of the most fluid tight ends in the league when he has the ball in his hands, and at 6-foot-4, 250 pounds, he has the size to come down with most jump balls. His best season to date was 2007. Winslow caught 82 passes for 1,106 yards (a healthy 13.5 per catch) and five touchdowns. Despite his size, he hasn't developed into a big red zone threat. Part of this can be blamed on the offense he was in with the Browns, though.

Injuries have slowed the talented second-generation star. A motorcycle accident cost him the entire 2005 season after he played in only two games his rookie year following a broken fibula. He dealt with a six-week staph infection after the motorcycle accident.

Winslow returned with a vengeance and completed his first full season in 2005. He hauled in what is still a career-best 89 passes. He scored three times and posted 875 yards (9.8 yards per reception).

Last season wasn't so kind to Winslow, or the Browns for that matter. He caught just 43 passes for 428 yards (10.0) and three touchdowns in 10 games. He was hospitalized for what was later learned to be another staph infection, and the entire ordeal ultimately soured his relationship with the organization, primarily general manager Phil Savage. Winslow was suspended one game for comments detrimental to the team, but the suspension was later rescinded; Winslow still sat out Week 8. To top off all of that, Winslow battled a high ankle and shoulder sprains as the season winded down.

The writing was on the wall for Winslow's departure from the Browns; it was just a matter of when and to whom.

Look for Tampa Bay to make him one of the primary focuses in the offense. He should end up as the second-most targeted player on the team behind Bryant. As long as Bryant is on par with his play of last season, and Clayton is capable of keeping defenders honest, Winslow should be free up the middle of the field. The addition of Ward and the return to health of Graham should only open it up further.

Fantasy football outlook
You always have to worry about the injury risk that comes with drafting Winslow. He has shown that regardless of the quarterback he is capable of producing. Winslow will need to learn a new playbook, adapt to a new quarterback and surroundings, but we're confident he is able to make a successful transition.

View Winslow as a strong No. 1 tight end in all fantasy circles, and he is slightly more valuable in point-per-reception formats. Don't bank on him in touchdown-heavy leagues, but his athleticism should win out in the red zone if given enough chances. He is a classic high-risk, high-reward player.

(kffl.com)

CLEVELAND - The spectacular moments were too few. The headaches, too many. Kellen Winslow's five-year run with the Cleveland Browns, a succession of stops, starts and setbacks, is finally over. Cleveland traded the talented and troublesome former Pro Bowl tight end to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Friday in exchange for draft picks new coach Eric Mangini can use to begin rebuilding the disappointing Browns following a calamitous 2008 season.

The Browns received a second-round pick this year and a fifth-round selection in 2010 for Winslow, whose stay in Cleveland was marked by brilliance, injuries and controversy.

An All-American at Miami, where his infamous postgame "I'm a soldier" rant shaped outside opinion of him, Winslow missed most of his first two NFL seasons with injuries. He nearly killed himself in a motorcycle accident, but came back and showed flashes of fulfilling his Hall of Fame pedigree.

Winslow squabbled with Cleveland's front office this past season. He was almost always hurt, but he almost always played.
Back in Florida, he's ready for a new beginning.

"Cleveland was great to me," he said in Tampa. "I had a great time playing with Braylon Edwards, Brady Quinn. I'm going to miss those guys. But it's also a new opportunity. I've played with some of the guys on this team — Jeff Faine, Antonio Bryant, Luke McCown. I'm as happy as can be. I'm healthy."

Winslow will be reunited in Tampa with Alfredo Roberts, his tights ends coach in Cleveland the past two seasons.

With the Browns, Winslow had 219 catches for 2,459 yards and 11 touchdowns. He matched Hall of Famer Ozzie Newsome's club record with 89 receptions in 2006 and made 82 in 2007, earning him a Pro Bowl spot. He played in 44 games, but he missed 36 because of injuries.

There had been speculation that Cleveland's new management team of Mangini and general manager George Kokinis would deal Winslow for draft picks — the Browns only had four in the '09 draft before the deal — so it was not completely surprising they cut ties with the 25-year-old in a blockbuster move on the first day of free agency.

"The Cleveland Browns thank Kellen for his contributions to this organization over the past five years," Kokinis said in a statement. "We appreciate his passion for the game and wish him success in Tampa Bay. The draft picks we have obtained through this deal will give us greater flexibility as we look to infuse more talent and create competition and depth on this football team."

Winslow's acquisition continues a busy week for the Buccaneers. Tampa Bay cut linebacker Derrick Brooks, an 11-time Pro Bowler and former NFL Defensive Player of the Year; wide receivers Joey Galloway and Ike Hilliard; running back Warrick Dunn; and linebacker Cato June in moves to save more than $10 million in salary cap space.

Winslow gives Tampa Bay a versatile offensive weapon. His size and speed make him difficult to defend, but it's unclear who will throw him the ball. Jeff Garcia is not expected to be re-signed, which currently leaves only Brian Griese and Luke McCown — drafted by the Browns the same year as Winslow — to battle it out for the starting job.

Winslow said he hasn't had a chance to speak with Tampa Bay's coaching staff about his role in the offense.

"We haven't gotten that far yet," he said. "I'm sure they'll find a way, though."

Winslow has never lacked confidence. The 6-foot-4, 250-pounder, who before his injuries and multiple knee operations could outrun most defensive backs, was arguably the most talented player on Cleveland's roster. But while he showed uncanny toughness and played through pain, Winslow was often a distraction.

The Browns traded their first-round pick in 2004 and a second rounder to Detroit to move up and select Winslow sixth overall. He broke his leg in just his second game while recovering an onsides kick and missed the remainder of his rookie season. He was rehabbing from the injury when he crashed his high-powered motorcycle while doing stunts in a parking lot.

Winslow was lucky to survive the wreck, suffering serious internal injuries and tearing a ligament in his right knee. He contracted a staph infection in the knee and had to undergo several clean-out procedures. Once healthy he produced, but following the '07 season, he hired agent Drew Rosenhaus and asked for a new contract.

The Browns appeared to be making plans for a future without Winslow when they drafted Martin Rucker in the fourth round last season.

Winslow's relationship with the team hit a low when he feuded publicly with former Cleveland GM Phil Savage in October.

Winslow was hospitalized for two days with an "undisclosed illness" and after being released he accused the club, which has had several players contract staph in recent years, of trying to hide his illness. Savage suspended him one game for making disparaging remarks about the team, but the penalty was later rescinded when it was learned that a team employee had sent Winslow e-mails urging him not to reveal the infection.

Winslow told Tampa reporters he is misunderstood.

"People don't really know me yet," he said. "Everybody makes mistakes, and the mistake I made was when I was 19 years old — I'm 25 now— was on national television. Everybody got to see it. I stand here before you now, I think I'm a changed man."

(sun-sentinel.com)

CLEVELAND -- The spectacular moments were too few. The headaches, too many. Kellen Winslow's five-year run with the Cleveland Browns, a succession of stops, starts and setbacks, is finally over.

Cleveland traded the talented and troublesome former Pro Bowl tight end to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Friday in exchange for undisclosed draft picks new coach Eric Mangini can use to begin rebuilding the disappointing Browns following a calamitous 2008 season.

The Browns received a second-round pick this year and a fifth-round selection in 2010 for Winslow, whose stay in Cleveland was marked by brilliance, injuries and controversy.

An All-American at Miami, where his infamous postgame "I'm a soldier" rant shaped outside opinion of him, Winslow missed most of his first two NFL seasons with injuries. He nearly killed himself in a motorcycle accident, but came back and showed flashes of fulfilling his Hall of Fame pedigree.

Winslow squabbled with Cleveland's front office this past season. He was almost always hurt, but he almost always played.

Back in Florida, he's ready for a new beginning.

"Cleveland was great to me," he said in Tampa. "I had a great time playing with Braylon Edwards, Brady Quinn. I'm going to miss those guys. But it's also a new opportunity. I've played with some of the guys on this team -- Jeff Faine, Antonio Bryant, Luke McCown. I'm as happy as can be. I'm healthy."

Winslow will be reunited in Tampa with Alfredo Roberts, his tights ends coach in Cleveland the past two seasons.

With the Browns, Winslow had 219 catches for 2,459 yards and 11 touchdowns. He matched Hall of Famer Ozzie Newsome's club record with 89 receptions in 2006 and made 82 in 2007, earning him a Pro Bowl spot. He played in 44 games, but he missed 36 because of injuries.

There had been speculation that Cleveland's new management team of Mangini and general manager George Kokinis would deal Winslow for draft picks -- the Browns only had four in the '09 draft before the deal -- so it was not completely surprising they cut ties with the 25-year-old in a blockbuster move on the first day of free agency.

"The Cleveland Browns thank Kellen for his contributions to this organization over the past five years," Kokinis said in a statement. "We appreciate his passion for the game and wish him success in Tampa Bay. The draft picks we have obtained through this deal will give us greater flexibility as we look to infuse more talent and create competition and depth on this football team."

Winslow's acquisition continues a busy week for the Buccaneers. Tampa Bay cut linebacker Derrick Brooks, an 11-time Pro Bowler and former NFL Defensive Player of the Year; wide receivers Joey Galloway and Ike Hilliard; running back Warrick Dunn; and linebacker Cato June in moves to save more than $10 million in salary cap space.

Winslow gives Tampa Bay a versatile offensive weapon. His size and speed make him difficult to defend, but it's unclear who will throw him the ball. Jeff Garcia is not expected to be re-signed, which currently leaves only Brian Griese and Luke McCown -- drafted by the Browns the same year as Winslow -- to battle it out for the starting job.

Winslow said he hasn't had a chance to speak with Tampa Bay's coaching staff about his role in the offense.

"We haven't gotten that far yet," he said. "I'm sure they'll find a way, though."

Winslow has never lacked confidence. The 6-foot-4, 250-pounder, who before his injuries and multiple knee operations could outrun most defensive backs, was arguably the most talented player on Cleveland's roster. But while he showed uncanny toughness and played through pain, Winslow was often a distraction.

The Browns traded their first-round pick in 2004 and a second rounder to Detroit to move up and select Winslow sixth overall. He broke his leg in just his second game while recovering an onsides kick and missed the remainder of his rookie season. He was rehabbing from the injury when he crashed his high-powered motorcycle while doing stunts in a parking lot.

Winslow was lucky to survive the wreck, suffering serious internal injuries and tearing a ligament in his right knee. He contracted a staph infection in the knee and had to undergo several clean-out procedures. Once healthy he produced, but following the '07 season, he hired agent Drew Rosenhaus and asked for a new contract.

The Browns appeared to be making plans for a future without Winslow when they drafted Martin Rucker in the fourth round last season.

Winslow's relationship with the team hit a low when he feuded publicly with former Cleveland GM Phil Savage in October.

Winslow was hospitalized for two days with an "undisclosed illness" and after being released he accused the club, which has had several players contract staph in recent years, of trying to hide his illness. Savage suspended him one game for making disparaging remarks about the team, but the penalty was later rescinded when it was learned that a team employee had sent Winslow e-mails urging him not to reveal the infection.
Winslow told Tampa reporters he is misunderstood.

"People don't really know me yet," he said. "Everybody makes mistakes, and the mistake I made was when I was 19 years old -- I'm 25 now- was on national television. Everybody got to see it. I stand here before you now, I think I'm a changed man."

(espn.com)

Beat writer Tony Grossi suggests that the chances of Kellen Winslow being traded may have decreased under the Browns' new regime.

Grossi would've expected K2 to be dealt had GM Phil Savage stayed on, but Eric Mangini probably wants to keep his most reliable pass catcher. That doesn't mean Winslow won't ask for a new contract again later this spring.

(rotoworld.com)

The National Football Post's Michael Lombardi believes the Browns will trade Kellen Winslow this offseason.

Winslow wore out his welcome with the previous regime, but Lombardi reports that he's also "not been a part of any discussions with coaching candidates." Whether he stays or goes, Winslow is going to be pushing hard for a contract extension.

(rotoworld.com)

Kellen Winslow hopes to return to the Browns next season, despite his midseason feud with the team and his contract issues.

"I do want to be back here," Winslow said. "I love being here and playing here. The fans have stuck by me, so yeah."

Winslow, who will sit out the Eagles game Monday night with his high ankle sprain, said none of the players are sure of their futures because of coach Romeo Crennel and General Manager Phil Savage being on the hot seat.

"Whatever happens, happens," he said. "I love being a Cleveland Brown. The guys here, we don't know who's going to be here next year. It's tough. You just have to focus on this year."

He said he didn't know if his status would be affected by that of Savage. Winslow's beef during the staph infection saga was mostly directed toward the general manager. "I'm not going to say," said Winslow.

He made it clear, however, that he has a very good relationship with Browns owner Randy Lerner. "I'm very happy with him," he said.

As for the new contract, he said, "I hired Drew Rosenhaus for that. That's his job." Then he added with a laugh, "I might just want to go and reach free agency [laughs]. Who knows?"

Winslow is under contract for the next two years at $4.5 million and $4.75 million. His request for a new deal has not been met and Savage said recently that no contracts will be renegotiated before the end of the season.

Winslow acknowledged that it's been a tough year for him, beginning with the staph infection and suspension. He also suffered a bruised right shoulder and then the high ankle sprain against the Colts Nov. 30. He sat out the Titans game last week and could miss the rest of this season.

"It just hasn't gone my way," he said. "I'm going to continue to fight."

Despite the ankle being a 3- to 6-week injury, Winslow is resisting injured reserve. The best-case scenario would have him back for the Bengals game Dec. 21 and the worst would be missing the remaining three games.

"I can come back, but I want to be healthy enough to help my team win," he said.

He said it would be easy to shut it down with the Browns at 4-9, "but my teammates are out there and it's hard to watch. I want to be out there with them."

One of the main reasons he wants to return is Ken Dorsey, his former University of Miami quarterback. The last game they played together was the Hurricanes' loss to Ohio State in the 2003 Fiesta Bowl. Winslow caught 11 passes for 122 yards and a TD in that 31-24 double-overtime loss.

"I'd love to be out there with him again," said Winslow. "We always talk about it. But we've got to do a better job of protecting him. It was tough to watch on Sunday."

He said the two are so in sync "that we don't even have to say anything. It's there."

With Pro Bowl voting by the players and coaches this week, Winslow wasn't expecting a cameo appearance. He's caught only 43 passes for 428 yards and three touchdowns. Last year, he had 82 catches for 1,106 yards and five TDs. "It's been disappointing," he said.

On the bright side, he said his oft-surgically repaired right knee won't need another procedure in the off-season. He revealed that his last scope was performed by noted orthopedic specialist Dr. James Andrews, the same surgeon who repaired Brady Quinn's finger and scoped Joe Jurevicius' knee Thursday.

"He did a phenomenal job," said Winslow. "He's the best."

(cleveland.com)

Starting tight end Kellen Winslow at least for their next game against the Tennessee Titans. The team released the following statement in regards to the his injury:

Winslow’s results revealed a high left ankle sprain. He will be in a walking boot for up to a week and is out for this Sunday’s game at Tennessee.

(clevelandleader.com)

Tight end Kellen Winslow's suffered a sprained right shoulder against the Bills and will probably be listed as questionable for Sunday's game against the Texans.

He sat out Wednesday's practice, but declined to comment. Coach Romeo Crennel said an MRI exam showed the current injury isn't worse than last season's separated left shoulder that bothered Winslow much of the season.

"If he can get his arm above his head and catch the football, then he'll play," he said. "If he can't or doesn't have the strength, then we're fooling ourselves if we think he'll be effective. It all depends on his strength and range of motion."

Receiver Braylon Edwards says he's never worried about Winslow's availability.

"No matter what kind of injury it seems like he has or if he misses a practice, that guy is going to play on Sunday," he said.

If Winslow can't play, Steve Heiden will replace him. The Browns are 2-0 with Heiden starting in place of Winslow this season.

Winslow suffered the injury on a 16-yard catch on the drive that led to Phil Dawson's game-winning 56-yard field goal. Winslow was tackled by linebacker Paul Posluszny, came down hard on his shoulder and came up wincing. But he continued to play and downplayed the injury after the game.

Winslow caught three passes for 40 yards, but the clutch, 16-yard sideline grab on second down to the Bills' 39 was pivotal in the victory. Brady Quinn threw three straight incompletions thereafter and Winslow's catch was enough to set Dawson up for the spectacular game-winner.

(cleveland.com)

BEREA -- Browns tight end Kellen Winslow will undergo an MRI on his right shoulder after injuring it in Monday night's 29-27 victory over the Bills.

Winslow suffered the injury on a 16-yard catch on the game-winning drive. He came up wincing after getting tackled near the right sideline.

"We'll check him out and see if he'll be able to do much this week,'' Browns head coach Romeo Crennel said during his weekly briefing. Crennel said it wasn't the same shoulder that bothered Winslow for much of last season.

Crennel also said that defensive lineman Shaun Smith suffered a calf muscle injury, running back Jerome Harrison pulled a hamstring, and Sean Jones sprained his ankle. All are questionable for Sunday's game against the Houston Texans.

(blog.cleveland.com)

Who's hot?

1. Ray Lewis, LB, Baltimore Ravens
Ray Lewis put together arguably his best game of the season in a 41-13 blowout victory over the Houston Texans. Lewis was dominant against the run--leading the team in tackles with eight--and jumping the passing lanes with two interceptions of Houston quarterback Sage Rosenfels. Throughout his career, Lewis has always had an uncanny knack for finding the football and did so again Sunday with another performance that was vintage Lewis. It's been apparent all year that the 13-year veteran can still bring it.

2. Willis McGahee, RB, Ravens
Is it us, or does Baltimore seem to have a different 100-yard rusher every week? Last week rookie Ray Rice had the hot hand. This week it was veteran Willis McGahee, who returned from a knee injury and rushed for 112 yards and two touchdowns. No matter who is getting the carries, it all equals success for the Ravens. Baltimore has a four-game winning streak and is averaging 33.5 points per game during that span. The consistent running game and ability to control the clock against opponents are major reasons why.

3. Kellen Winslow Jr., TE, Cleveland Browns
A major reason for new Browns quarterback Brady Quinn's success last week were the numbers put up by tight end Kellen Winslow Jr. He had a season-high 10 catches for 111 yards and two touchdowns in a losing effort against Denver. It marked the first multi-touchdown game for Winslow since high school. It's clear that Cleveland's offense under Quinn will take on a much different look and will focus more on short passes to the tight ends and running backs. So Winslow could be in for a big second half of the season with the quarterback change.

(espn.com)

Eagles inquired about TE Winslow before deadline

Whether the Eagles really would have pulled the trigger on tight end Kellen Winslow before the trade deadline had the price tag not been prohibitive, which quietly is the word, or whether it was just a smokescreen is open to debate.

On the other hand that wasn’t the first time the Eagles inquired about Winslow and as long as Andy Reid is head coach it almost certainly won’t be the last.

The Cleveland Browns wanted a second-rounder and multiple picks, according to a source, the Eagles obviously less. Winslow was preferred over Tony Gonzalez, the other high-profile tight end dangled before the trade deadline.

The Eagles quietly don’t think Winslow would behave as he did with the Browns, his outbursts and decision to bypass the voluntary camps not helping his popularity. On the other hand those antics have made the Browns wonder if he’s worth all of the trouble. Under pressure from the NFL Players Association, they recently rescinded a one-game suspension of Winslow for conduct detrimental to the team

A change of scenery might be best for both sides although Winslow has said he would prefer to stay in Cleveland — if, that is, the Browns redo his contract. Winslow has two more years remaining.

Unless tight end L.J. Smith starts playing like Winslow — or Eagles teammate Brent Celek, for that matter — it would seem a foregone conclusion he won’t be back at anything close to the $4.55 million base he’s earning this season. With Celek on the rise, veteran Matt Schobel likely is on the way out as well.

With 36 receptions for 362 yards and three touchdowns, Winslow isn’t having another Pro Bowl season. The same can be said of his teammates as the Browns are 3-6, their second starting quarterback in Brady Quinn and in need of a miracle to make the playoffs.

That said Winslow contributed 10 catches for 111 yards and two TD’s in a 34-30 loss to the Denver Broncos Thursday night.

If the up-and-coming Celek could haul in six passes for 131 yards against the Seahawks, imagine what Winslow could do in the Eagles’ offense.

(theporteronline.com)

CLEVELAND -- Kellen Winslow blamed himself for letting the last pass of the game slip right through his Pro Bowl hands.

"I can't get that last play out of my head," he said. "The great ones make that catch and that's what I want to be. I let my team down."

With 54 seconds remaining, the Browns trailing, 34-30, and facing a fourth and 1 at their 42, Brady Quinn fired a pass to Winslow in the left flat and it sailed right through his hands. End of game.

Never mind that Winslow caught 10 passes for 111 yards and two touchdowns, a 5-yarder and a 16-yarder. He also fumbled in the fourth quarter to set up a Denver touchdown that put the Broncos up, 27-23, with 9:50 remaining.

"Dre Bly just made a great play on the ball," said Winslow. "I was trying to protect the ball and get extra yardage. I knew it was going to cost us, and it did."

Winslow redeemed himself some on the next drive when his 30-yard catch and run took the ball to the Denver 24. The catch led to a Jamal Lewis touchdown run that put the Browns back up, 30-27.

But the drop at the end was the only thing that mattered to Winslow.

"It was a routine catch. I love it when the ball comes to me in clutch situations," he said. "That's what I live for and I missed the shot. I let my team down and it was the first time that's happened. I won't let it happen again. I'm going to take it as a lesson and it will make me stronger."

Despite the loss, Winslow praised Quinn, who had instant chemistry with the tight end.

"He's a gamer," said Winslow. "He's real calm in the huddle. He calmed me down when I was excited. He's a good quarterback."

Winslow also committed offensive pass interference that wiped out a 15-yard catch by Braylon Edwards in the fourth quarter.

"They call one every week," said Winslow. "It's pretty frustrating. I don't know what they want me to do."

Winslow's first TD catch was a five-yarder in the first quarter on a post route in which Quinn split two defenders just before getting drilled for a 7-0 lead. His second was a 16-yard catch at the left side in which he shook off safety Marquand Manuel at the 6 and scampered in.

"I just didn't make enough plays," he said.

(blog.cleveland.com)

BEREA, Ohio -- Kellen Winslow didn't utter a word about staph infections or suspensions. After a contentious, confusing week laced with suspicion, innuendo and dueling statements, the Pro Bowl tight end returned to the Cleveland Browns on Monday eager to restart his disrupted season.

"I'm ready to move on and just play football," he said.

Kellen Winslow returned to practice Monday after missing two of the Browns' past three games.

Winslow and the Browns appear to have made a truce, albeit a tenuous one.

Suspended one game last week by the club, which later rescinded its penalty, Winslow rejoined his teammates one day after the Browns won for the second time this season without him.

Winslow spoke briefly in front of his locker before heading to a team meeting. The 25-year-old said he has worked out his differences with Browns general manager Phil Savage and owner Randy Lerner.

"They knew where I was coming from and I understood where they were coming from, so it is all worked out," he said. "I am just excited to get back to playing football, doing what I love to do. I just really see this as a challenge, so I am going to meet it."

Winslow was banned from the team's facility last week by the Browns, who suspended him for criticizing the team's handling of his three-day hospitalization at the Cleveland Clinic with a staph infection. After initially agreeing with the team to keep his illness concealed, Winslow revealed he had staph following a loss at Washington last week.

Two days later, the Browns suspended the outspoken Winslow one game without pay for disparaging comments and behavior toward the organization. Winslow insists he was coming forward to protect the health of his teammates. He has had staph twice and is one of at least six known Cleveland players to contract staph since 2005.

Winslow appealed the suspension, which was dropped late Saturday night after the Browns reportedly learned Winslow had received text messages from a member of Cleveland's media relations staff who told him not to reveal he had staph.

GM Phil Savage confirmed Kellen Winslow's second staph infection Monday after having deferred questions to the tight end.

After Sunday's 23-17 win in Jacksonville, Savage downplayed the importance of the text messages and said he and Winslow's agent, Drew Rosenhaus, had been working toward a settlement since Thursday.

Savage also suggested Winslow had been hospitalized for something other than staph and the club was trying to protect the player's privacy.

"If there's going to be disclosure, there's got to be full disclosure," Savage said outside Cleveland's locker room in Jacksonville. "We were trying to do the right thing by him and his family."

Savage was asked why Winslow had been hospitalized.

"I don't know," said Savage. "I think it's all in a gray area right now. You can ask him [Winslow]."

Before coach Romeo Crennel's news conference Monday, an agitated Savage came into the team's media room to discuss his postgame comments.

"Once and for all, Kellen's illness was determined to be a staph infection," Savage said tersely. "He had been in the hospital for two or three days; it takes a couple days to figure out what something is. Secondly, there was no secondary illness. Thirdly, he is in the building, he has worked out and the team meets at 1 o'clock.

"That's the end of the story. It is over with, OK? There is no secondary illness. Staph infection. Everybody's got it, right?"

Later, Crennel said he was happy to have Winslow back and the star had returned with a good attitude.

"I've spoken with him and he wants to be a Brown," Crennel said. "I think that he's going to come out and he's going to give us a good effort and a good performance."

The Browns are 2-0 without Winslow, who was released from the hospital the day before their Oct. 13 upset of the New York Giants. On Sunday, backup tight end Steve Heiden led the club with 73 yards receiving, picking up 51 on a fourth-and-1 catch to set up Cleveland's second touchdown.

Heiden also played well in the win over New York, making five catches for 59 yards as the Browns stunned the defending Super Bowl champions 35-14.

Crennel was effusive in praising Heiden, who had a career-high 43 receptions in 2005 when Winslow missed the season following a motorcycle accident.

"He is an all-around tight end, tremendous teammate and when you call on him to do something, he does whatever you call on him to do," Crennel said. "If that is to be the starter, he is the starter. If that's to be the No. 2 guy, then he's the No. 2 guy and he's always for the team, always for the Browns.

"That is the kind of attitude a coach likes on his team. We have to build on that and move forward with that."

Crennel chuckled when asked if Heiden would take Winslow's starting spot.

"We're going to work Kellen in and I'll say this: Don't be surprised if Kellen is the starter," Crennel said. "I'm not saying he's the starter, but don't be surprised if he's the starter."

At this point in the Winslow saga, nothing would be surprising.

(espn.com)

JACKSONVILLE, FLA.: Kellen Winslow will rejoin the Browns this morning and be welcomed back, General Manager Phil Savage said Sunday after a win over the Jacksonville Jaguars.

''I spoke to Kellen [Saturday] night,'' Savage said. ''I made a couple points to him in regards to he and the team and he and I's relationship. . . . I understand some of the points he made and we had a good conversation.''

The Browns rescinded Winslow's suspension Saturday night and converted it to a $25,000 fine.

Savage said any information about Winslow's illness, which Winslow said was a staph infection, had to come from Winslow. The GM said the team never has decreed a player should keep medical information private.

''That's not our decision,'' Savage said.

Savage was asked whether he could say why Winslow initially was hospitalized.

''I don't know. Bill, has it been disclosed or is it still a private matter?'' Savage asked Bill Bonsiewicz, the Browns' vice president of communications. ''I think it's all in a gray area right now. I think the best thing to say is, 'No, you can ask him.' ''

Savage maintained his disappointment with Winslow's remarks after a loss to the Washington Redskins, and said discussions to settle the suspension began Thursday, when Winslow's agent, Drew Rosenhaus, called to see whether one were possible.

''I think there are always things you could do differently,'' Savage said. ''But we felt strongly that some of the comments that were made did disparage our team and our organization.

''And they were unwarranted from the way we saw things and way we've handled scenarios and situations with not only Kellen, but a lot of other players here.''

Winslow spent the past few days in San Diego and did not play Sunday because he did not travel with the team.

''We're going to try to go forward and make it work and have a winning team,'' Savage said.

(ohio.com)

In a copy of Kellen Winslow's suspension letter obtained by The Plain Dealer, it's revealed Winslow was not only suspended by the Browns for statements they felt were disparaging to the club, but also for what the team described as "profane verbal abuse of a Club's public relations member in the locker room" following the game at Washington.

While Winslow was sitting at his locker last Sunday preparing to be interviewed, he asked director of communications Amy Palcic to leave so he could speak to a reporter. It was clear he wanted to speak his mind without a member of the public relations staff listening. It's common practice for one of them to be there when big-name players such as Winslow and Braylon Edwards are interviewed.

Neither Winslow nor Palcic raised their voices during the exchange, which went like this, according to The Plain Dealer's audiotape, which can be heard on cleveland.com.

Winslow: "Amy, I'm good. Can you please stop playing big sis and leave? Seeing what I'm going to say and sh-?"

Palcic, who was standing a few feet away, remained where she was.

Winslow: "Um, Amy, can you please leave?"

Palcic: "Talk if you want to talk."

Winslow: "What?"

Palcic: "Talk. I'm not going to cut you off."

Winslow then answered questions for about four minutes, telling reporters he was upset with General Manager Phil Savage for not calling him while he was in the Cleveland Clinic with a staph infection and that he felt like "a piece of meat." He also admitted during that portion of the interview that he thought about asking to be traded before last week's deadline and informed Savage.

Palcic attempted to end the session midway through, but Winslow continued. Then, in the middle of a question about his contract, Winslow was beckoned by running back Jamal Lewis. Winslow told him: "I'm good. Let me get one more." But Lewis persisted and Winslow walked away and joined him.

Palcic declined to comment Friday, but Browns spokesman Bill Bonsiewicz, when asked if another exchange took place with a member of the PR staff, said, "Yes, I was made aware of another exchange, but due to the fact there's a pending grievance, I'd prefer not to comment beyond that."

After Winslow spent about 10 minutes away from his locker, he returned, sat back down and spoke to a reporter for a few minutes. Then he motioned The Plain Dealer over for a one-on-one interview. During that session, Winslow revealed his previously undisclosed illness was a staph infection and said "there's obviously a problem [with staph] and we have to fix it."

"Just look at the history around here. It's unfortunate, because it happens time and time again," Winslow said.

During that interview, Edwards, who was a few lockers away, waved his arms back and forth at Winslow to try to get him to stop talking. Winslow gave him the thumbs up and said he was good. Another member of the Browns PR staff, Reagan Berube, listened in. When Winslow finished, the locker room period was over.

In the suspension letter, which was on Browns letterhead, hand-delivered to Winslow and signed only by coach Romeo Crennel, it says "you made public statements that were inappropriate, inaccurate, portrayed the Club in a false light, and diminished the Club's reputation. In addition, you engaged in profane verbal abuse of a Club's public relations member in the locker room following the Redskins game."

It tells Winslow his actions "significantly disrupted and adversely affected the Cleveland Browns team and organization, and cannot be tolerated."
Winslow has appealed his suspension for Sunday's game in Jacksonville and the hearing is set for Tuesday in Cleveland in front of arbitrator Rosemary Townley. Winslow's attorney, Adam Kaiser, said he insisted the hearing take place Friday or today so Winslow would be eligible to play in the game if it was overturned.

Because Kaiser requested the hearing be expedited, the arbitrator had seven days in which to hear it and chose Tuesday, according to NFL spokesman Greg Aiello. If Winslow loses the appeal, he will forfeit his $235,294 game check. If he wins, he will recoup the money. The two sides can also agree on a settlement beforehand.

Also, in response to Savage's remarks in an interview on WTAM AM/1100 on Thursday regarding Winslow's illness, a source with knowledge of the situation said: "It's just staph. It was a bad staph infection."

Savage said during the interview: "Due to the nature of this particular situation, it seemed that the people involved wouldn't want it out there. So our hands are tied in certain situations. And it was all agreed upon. It's a nonfootball illness. It occurred during the bye week."

(cleveland.com)

BEREA, Ohio (AP) — Pro Bowl tight end Kellen Winslow appealed his one-game suspension for critical comments he made about the Cleveland Browns' handling of his hospitalization with a staph infection, the latest development in a bizarre back-and-forth squabble.

Winslow was suspended without pay by general manager Phil Savage on Tuesday for comments and behavior disparaging to the organization. Winslow was critical of Savage and said he only came forward to reveal he had staph — for the second time — out of concern for his teammates' health.

Denise White, a publicist with EAG Sports Management, said Winslow appealed the suspension and filed the appropriate paperwork with the NFL Players Association.

Union attorney Adam Kaiser will represent Winslow in an expedited grievance proceeding before an arbitrator in Cleveland on Friday or Saturday. If Winslow loses, he will sit out Sunday's game in Jacksonville and forfeit $235,294, his one-game paycheck. If Winslow wins, he could keep his money and Kaiser said it's possible the 25-year-old could be reinstated in time to play against the Jaguars.

Whatever the outcome, Browns coach Romeo Crennel feels Winslow's rift with the team can be fixed.

"I think it is repairable," he said. "Kellen is not a bad kid. I have a pretty decent relationship with Kellen. With me personally, I feel that relations are repairable and we will go forward."

The unusual case pitting star player and struggling franchise began on Oct. 9 when Winslow was admitted to the Cleveland Clinic with an undisclosed illness.

According to Crennel and Savage, the team and Winslow made a joint decision to keep the player's medical condition confidential. However, when he returned to practice last week after missing Cleveland's 35-14 upset over the New York Giants, Winslow said it was the Browns who didn't want to disclose his illness. He said he agreed with their stance.

But Winslow broke the apparent pact following Sunday's loss in Washington, revealing he had staph and saying the team, which has had at least six known cases of staph since 2005, asked him to conceal it. He also lashed out at Savage for not calling him during his three-day stay in the hospital and said he felt he was being treated "like a piece of meat" by the team.

Savage responded by suspending Winslow and called the fiery player's comments and behavior "unwarranted, inappropriate, and unnecessarily disparaging to our organization."

Winslow countered with his own statement, saying he spoke out because of a health concern and not because he's seeking a new contract from the Browns.

Despite the disturbingly high number of staph cases, Crennel said he abided by the team's understanding with Winslow and did not inform Cleveland's other players that the tight end had staph again.

"He was in the hospital and it was a personal issue," Crennel said in explaining the team's decision to keep Winslow's illness from his teammates.

This was Winslow's second bout with staph. He first contracted an infection following surgery on his right knee, which he severely injured in a near-fatal motorcycle crash three years ago. Winslow has had at least three other surgeries on the knee, which was most recently scoped during the past offseason.

While his suspension is in effect, Winslow is not allowed to attend practices, team meetings or be at the Browns' training facility.
Surprisingly, there was little reaction inside Cleveland's locker room to Winslow's suspension and not one player interviewed seemed alarmed by a new case of staph.

A few players, including center Hank Fraley and linebacker Andra Davis — two team captains — as well as tight end Steve Heiden were reluctant to address Winslow's situation.

"I don't even want to talk about it," said Heiden, who will likely start in place of Winslow. "We're trying to beat the Jaguars, that's all I'm worried about. I can't wait to have Kellen back, and when he gets back we'll go to work with Kellen."

Quarterback Derek Anderson admitted he was somewhat surprised by the team's decision to suspend Winslow, who has a team-high 21 receptions and has been one of the Browns' best players the past three seasons.

"A little bit," Anderson said. "Obviously, they made a decision and went with it. I just play here."

As for the team's problems with staph, kicker Phil Dawson said the Browns have been proactive in educating their players about how to protect themselves from becoming infected. During training camp, infectious control experts from the clinic visited the team and explained the risks of staph and how to combat the virus, which has become more common in the NFL.

"This thing is everywhere," Dawson said. "All the information was given to us, literature we could take home. With all that said, you still feel for a fellow player who gets it. Your heart goes out to them and it's a scary thing, but I don't think it's isolated to the Cleveland Browns."

(ap.com)

In the days and hours leading up to last Tuesday’s trade deadline, players such as tight end Tony Gonzalez and wide receiver Roy Williams constantly were tracked.

The one player who went overlooked publicly, but not privately, was Cleveland tight end Kellen Winslow, who was dangled before the deadline.

The Browns explored the possibility of trading Winslow, according to multiple league sources, but never could get enough in return to consummate a deal. Cleveland declined to comment on the proposed trade –- Browns general manager Phil Savage emailed Tuesday that “a number of calls are made ahead of the trade deadline regarding different players … those conversations are confidential in nature” -– but it is easy enough to figure out why Cleveland would have considered dealing Winslow.

For starters, he is seeking a new contract that could be difficult for the Browns to squeeze under their salary cap. Also, Cleveland traded its third-round pick in the 2009 draft for a fourth-round pick in this year’s draft, which it used on tight end Martin Rucker -– and now is looking to add more picks. Plus, there is the public dispute the team has gotten into with Winslow over his staph infection.

So it’s not overly surprising that the Browns explored a deal. It’s just surprising that they were able to keep it so quiet.

(nfl.com)

Pro Bowl tight end Kellen Winslow drew a one-game suspension for his angry comments concerning his treatment by Browns general manager Phil Savage following Sunday's 14-11 loss at Washington.

Starting Wednesday, Winslow will not be able to practice or attend meetings. After missing Sunday's game at Jacksonville, he can return to the team Monday.

Unless he appeals, the suspension will cost Winslow one game check, which amounts to $235,294, 1/17th of his $4 million base salary.

The Browns announced the decision in a statement from general manager Phil Savage today. Winslow is the first Browns player suspended since Savage and coach Romeo Crennel took over in 2005.

''Kellen has expressed his desire to be a productive member of the Cleveland Browns,'' Savage said in the statement. ''His comments and behavior on Sunday evening, however, were unwarranted, inappropriate, and unnecessarily disparaging to our organization. His statements brought unjustified negative attention to our organization, and violated the team-first concept of our football squad. Therefore, disciplinary action will be taken in the form of a one-game suspension without pay for conduct detrimental to the club.''

Drew Rosenhaus, Winslow's agent, did not respond to requests for comment.

Winslow was upset that Savage did not call him while he was hospitalized for three days in the Cleveland Clinic earlier this month. Winslow revealed Sunday he was being treated a staph infection, the second of his four-year career. Winslow and Savage had a heated confrontation outside the locker room in Washington and later Winslow said, ''Sometimes you just feel like a piece of meat.''

The sixth-overall pick in the 2004 draft is also seeking a renegotiated contract. His current deal has three years remaining and will pay him $4.75 million in 2009 and $4.75 million in 2010. Savage has repeatedly said a new contract for Winslow, who has undergone at least four surgeries on his right knee since a 2005 motorcycle accident, is not a high priority.

Winslow was also unhappy that the Browns chose not to reveal the nature of his undisclosed illness. He told ESPN.com he felt his teammates needed to know. Savage addressed that subject in Tuesday's statement.

''The Cleveland Browns are committed to winning and taking care of our players,'' Savage said. ''We are also committed to protecting the privacy of our players, particularly with regard to medical issues. To that end, following discussions with Kellen Winslow and his representation, the Browns agreed to make every effort to maintain the confidentiality of his recent medical condition.''

Savage said the Browns conducted an ''extensive presentation by experts in the field of infectious diseases'' during training camp and that Winslow attended the session.

(ohio.com)

Browns coach Romeo Crennel confirmed Monday that Kellen Winslow suffered a staph infection and also chastised him for going to the media with his complaints about Browns General Manager Phil Savage.

"If he has an issue, he should address it with the organization and not to the media," said Crennel. "I don't know how much you gain by that. He should come to the organization first and try to reach some kind of agreement. Then, if he's not satisfied, he can go elsewhere."

Crennel, who spoke to Winslow on the plane ride home from the game, indicated that he could fine or suspend him for conduct detrimental to the team.

"We'll investigate it, and then we'll determine if anything needs to be done," said Crennel. "My policy is to keep family business in the family. Whatever I do, I'm not going to broadcast it. It's the organization's call. I will consult with everybody."

Winslow revealed to The Plain Dealer on Sunday night that his previously undisclosed illness was a staph infection and that he was upset that he didn't hear from Savage during his three-day stay in the Cleveland Clinic last week. He also was miffed the Browns said it was Winslow who wanted to keep it private when, according to Winslow, the team wanted to hide the fact it was staph.

Savage said in an e-mail response that he probably will comment today.

In an interview with espn.com early Monday, Winslow said, "Nobody knew that I had staph on the team because the Browns didn't want it to get out. But it's my teammates' right to know what's going on at the facility to protect them. Their safety is at risk, too."

Winslow's second bout with the infection over the past two weeks was the sixth known staph infection by a Browns player since 2005 and seventh since 2004. Still, Crennel said Winslow going public was a distraction for the 2-4 team.

"Not only is it a distraction for the organization, but it's a distraction for Kellen, and it'll be a distraction for the players in the locker room because they'll get asked a lot of questions," said Crennel. "All of those things are taking away from football and their focus and concentration on the next game."

Crennel said the fact it came after a loss -- 14-11 to the Redskins -- made it a little more difficult to take, but win or lose, "if you've got an issue, let's come and put it on the table."

Winslow, who's also upset that the Browns aren't acting on his request for a new contract, said he told Savage how he felt before talking to the media in what was described by observers as a heated discussion outside the locker room. Crennel surmised that Winslow's unproductive game, coupled with the confrontation, caused him to vent. He caught two of the seven passes thrown his way, and he and Derek Anderson were way off on most of the others.

"Kellen is a very emotional player," said Crennel. "He's competitive and wants to win. He was coming off an injury situation and didn't probably play as much as he wanted to. Sometimes the emotions of the game and your personal situation overflow."

Asked if Winslow and the Browns can co-exist after the outburst, Crennel said: "Sure, yes. Kellen has a good relationship with the organization and likes the players on this team. I think he'll play for the Cleveland Browns."

Crennel said he represented the Browns when he called Winslow at the Clinic. "We value all our players, and when they're injured, we check to find out how they're doing, give them encouragement and tell them we want them to get better as soon as they can. . . . They're my guys. I'm with them every day. That's part of showing them that you care."

Crennel also said the Browns are doing everything they can to keep staph in check, including sanitizing the building regularly, having it coated with an anti-bacterial agent, and educating the players about prevention.

"We're doing everything we can to try to keep our players safe," said Crennel. "No [player] has come to me and said we aren't doing enough. If we knew [where they were picking it up], we could pinpoint it and address it. Some of them have been pre-op, some have been post-op, some of them have been after the guy's left the hospital and gone home. There are a lot of different circumstances."

Tight end Darnell Dinkins, the players' union rep, said he's certain the team is taking every precaution.

"Anybody who has staph, you're talking about your life," said Dinkins. "It's bigger than football. It's bigger than a game. Kellen's a good friend of mine. Anyone who has a condition or issue like that, you want to make sure he's protected and he's healthy."

Linebacker Andra Davis supported Winslow but said: "This is something we definitely don't need right now because we're 2-4. We need to focus on winning games. All this other stuff will take care of itself. If we don't focus on the Jaguars, they're going to beat our heads in. They don't care what we're going through."

(blog.cleveland.com)

LANDOVER, Md. (AP) — Cleveland Browns tight end Kellen Winslow confirmed a staph infection caused his recent hospitalization and criticized the team Sunday for treating him "like a piece of meat."

After the Browns' 14-11 loss to Washington, Winslow said he was upset the team wanted to keep the infection quiet and blamed him for not wanting it revealed.

Winslow was hospitalized for three days last week, and Browns coach Romeo Crennel refused to discuss his condition, citing privacy laws and Winslow's preference not to disclose any medical information.

Winslow said he was upset general manager Phil Savage did not call him while he was hospitalized.

"I heard from Romeo Crennel and I heard from my position coach (Alfredo Roberts) when I was in the Clinic. I heard from my teammates,"
Winslow told the (Cleveland) Plain Dealer. "But I never heard from the main man — Phil Savage — and that really disappoints me. Sometimes I don't even feel a part of this team."

Winslow said he considered asking for a trade before last Tuesday's deadline. He said he spoke to Savage on Sunday and voiced his frustration.

"I feel I've done a lot for this team, played through a lot of pain and given it my all," Winslow said. "I just thought there'd be a little more 'How are you doing?' by him."

It was Winslow's second staph infection and the sixth by a Browns player since 2005.

"There's obviously a problem (with staph) and we have to fix it," he said. "Just look at the history around here. It's unfortunate, because it happens time and time again."

Winslow's NFL career has been hindered by injuries, with at least four surgeries on his right knee, which he severely injured during a near-fatal motorcycle crash in 2005. His knee was later infected with staph, which had to be cleaned out and delayed his comeback.

"I'm just frustrated with a lot of things," he said. "I feel it's been going on for a while. I don't get treated right and it's not fair. Sometimes I just feel under-appreciated. I felt it was time to say something."

(ap.com)

A league source tells us that the talk among the Browns is that tight end Kellen Winslow landed in the Cleveland Clinic because his balls swelled to the size of grapefruits.

(We think that technical term is testiculus coconutus.)

Actually, one explanation for the situation is a condition known as hyrdocele.  And while the condition in itself isn’t serious, it could be a symptom of testicular cancer.

(pfw.com)

BEREA, Ohio – Cleveland Browns tight end Kellen Winslow, hospitalized last week with an undisclosed illness, remains at home under doctors' orders and coach Romeo Crennel on Wednesday offered no definitive timetable for the Pro Bowler's return.

Winslow spent three nights at the Cleveland Clinic before he was discharged last Sunday. The 25-year-old, who has battled injuries throughout his NFL career and contracted a staph infection following knee surgery in 2005, missed Cleveland's win on Monday night over the New York Giants.

Winslow practiced early last week before he began feeling ill. He went to the hospital for an examination last Thursday and was admitted.

The Browns have provided little information on Winslow's condition, citing health laws and the player's privacy.

Winslow's agent, Drew Rosenhaus, has not returned phone calls or e-mails seeking comment.

During his news conference on Wednesday, Crennel said Winslow is being treated at home.

“He is doing well, I spoke with him,” Crennel said. “I am hoping that he can play this weekend (Sunday, at Washington). He is questionable for the game and questionable is 50-50. If things keep progressing, because he is making progress, then he will be there and be able to help us try to win the game.”

Crennel said the decision to keep Winslow away from the team facility was made by medical personnel.

“He is being treated by the doctors and they are telling him to stay at home and he is checking in at the Clinic,” Crennel said. “When they tell him to come, he will come.”

Winslow, one of Cleveland's top offensive stars, was replaced in the starting lineup against the Giants by Steve Heiden, who caught five passes for 59 yards. Backup tight end Darnell Dinkins also caught a 22-yard touchdown pass as the Browns shocked the Super Bowl champions and won their first Monday night game since 1993.

If Winslow can't play against the Redskins, Crennel hopes his teammates will step up again.

“If he (Winslow) is not here I am going to try to get those tight ends to do what they did on Monday night,” Crennel said.

Winslow has had a star-crossed pro career.

The former first-round pick and son of Hall of Famer Kellen Winslow Sr. broke his leg trying to recover an onsides kick during his second game as a rookie in 2004 and missed the remainder of the season.

While he was rehabbing during the following offseason, Winslow suffered near-fatal injuries when he crashed his motorcycle while doing stunts in a parking lot. He underwent surgery on his right knee, which was later infected with staph and had to be cleaned out. Winslow had at least two more surgeries on the knee.

The Browns have had numerous players infected with staph in recent years.

Winslow tied a franchise record with 89 catches in 2006, and last season he earned a trip to the Pro Bowl after recording 82 receptions for 1,106 yards.

Following the Pro Bowl, he had arthroscopic knee surgery and Rosenhaus announced that he intended to get Winslow a contract extension from the Browns, who have already restructured the tight end's contract to help him recoup some of the money he lost while he missed time in his first two years.

Winslow skipped the team's voluntary practices during the spring, and there was speculation that he might hold out of training camp. However, Winslow reported on time and entered last week's game with 19 catches for 170 yards.

(signonsandiego.com)

Barring any setbacks, Kellen Winslow Jr. should be back on the practice field today when the Browns begin their preparation for the game against the Redskins on Sunday.

Players were off Tuesday. Crennel said Winslow spent the day resting at home after missing the game Monday with an illness that kept him hospitalized three nights last week.

Crennel said he expects Winslow to play against the Redskins, although Winslow might be limited in practice today and Thursday.

Steve Heiden caught five passes against the Giants. When Winslow returns, though, Heiden is expected to go back to his role as a blocker.

“Heiden, ever since I’ve been here, has been a tremendous player for this team,” Crennel said. “In 2005, he caught (43) balls and when Kellen got back, he took a back seat and became a good team player. He still is a good team player, and when we go to him he usually produces.

“When we’ve got both of them, now we’ve got two guys that we can go to. That’s a good problem to have.”

Heiden caught 12 passes last year. Winslow caught 82.

Browns tight end Kellen Winslow will remain in the Cleveland Clinic for a second night tonight with an undisclosed illness, according to a Browns spokesperson.

Winslow is still listed as questionable for Monday night's game against the New York Giants, meaning there is a 50 percent chance he will play.
The Browns had hoped he would be released on Friday and possibly return to practice on Saturday.

Returning from the bye week Winslow had appeared healthy at Monday's workout, but missed practice Wednesday and Thursday, then was hospitalized Thursday evening.

(blog.cleveland.com)

BEREA, Ohio (AP) -- The Cleveland Browns sent tight end Kellen Winslow to the doctor for tests after he missed his second straight day of practice with an unspecified "illness."

Browns coach Romeo Crennel said Winslow, who has been plagued by injuries throughout his NFL career, has been sick for two days. Crennel would not say if Winslow would play in Monday night's game against the New York Giants.

"He's a valuable piece to the puzzle we have," Crennel said Thursday. "I know that he'll want to play, so he'll do everything he can to be able to play."

Crennel would not elaborate on Winslow's condition or disclose any medical problems.

"Not until after doctors take look at him and see if they can know what it is," he said.

Team spokesman Bill Bonsiewicz said the team would have no further update on Winslow until Friday, when Crennel holds his daily news conference.

Winslow's agent, Drew Rosenhaus, did not immediately return a message seeking comment.

Winslow caught 82 passes and made the Pro Bowl last season, his fourth as a pro. So far this year, he has 19 catches and one touchdown for the Browns (1-3).

Winslow was kept out of practice last week when the Browns had a bye. He practiced on Monday and was at the team's training facility on Wednesday but did not participate in the club's workout. This past offseason, Winslow had arthroscopic surgery on his right knee.

He has had other procedures on the knee, including one to clean out a staph infection he got while recovering from injuries sustained in a near-fatal motorcycle accident that caused him to miss the entire 2005 season.

(cnnsi.com)

The Cleveland Plain Dealer reports Browns GM Phil Savage said "there really hasn't been" much in the way of new contract talks for TE Kellen Winslow II. "As I've said all along, we've kept talks open," Savage said. "We've kept an open communication, but for the most part, those kinds of things are on the back burner. The first priority is to try to win a football game, and those kinds of things tend to sort themselves out over time. You have to have some patience with it, and that's really what we're trying to do in some of these contract situations."

(ffmastermind.com)

CLEVELAND — The Dallas Cowboys’ defense had a game plan centered heavily on one Cleveland Brown — Pro Bowl tight end Kellen Winslow.

Tight ends had been known to tear apart Cowboys defenses in the past. They found coverage advantages and took advantage. But the Browns couldn’t do so against the Cowboys’ defense Sunday.

Dallas kept Winslow and all his big-play Browns teammates from changing the game in a relatively easy-looking season-opening 28-10 victory at Cleveland Browns Stadium. Winslow scored Cleveland’s lone touchdown but was mostly harmless the rest of the game and finished with five catches for 47 yards.

"In the past tight ends have been our Achilles’ heel," linebacker Bradie James said. "Once you stop the run and stop Kellen Winslow, you can pin your ears back and try to make some plays after that."

In the second half, Winslow had only one catch for 9 yards and was the centerpiece of the Cowboys’ strategy of slowing the Browns’ stars. Dallas held Cleveland (eighth in total offense in 2007) to 205 yards of offense, Pro Bowl quarterback Derek Anderson to 114 passing yards and running back Jamal Lewis to a quiet 62 rushing yards.

Also, Pro Bowl receiver Braylon Edwards had just two catches for 14 yards and never got in sync with Anderson.

It was all about game planning to stop the son of legendary Hall of Fame tight end Kellen Winslow. When the Cowboys went to their new dime formation, Winslow was covered by cornerback Anthony Henry. That’s a change from last year, when safety Roy Williams covered tight ends.

The Cowboys also gave Williams help on first and second down with, get this, outside linebacker Greg Ellis in coverage keeping Winslow from a free release off the line.

"At times we showed what kind of defense we can be, but we can play better," Pro Bowl safety Ken Hamlin said.

Cowboys coach Wade Phillips believes his defense can be better this year after having another year in his 3-4 system with talent upgrades. Now, the Cowboys feel much better about their depth. Last year when cornerback Terence Newman was out, the rest of the Cowboys’ defense didn’t know what would happen.

"In the off-season we went out and got talent," James said. "Like, last year when T-New was out, it was like a panic. We have enough people to hold it down until he gets back, and that showed up today."

Adam "Pacman" Jones, starting in place of Newman, didn’t give up any big plays as he fought off the rust, and the Cowboys applied pressure despite only one sack, by DeMarcus Ware.

The Cowboys’ only real flaw was giving up a 16-play, 78-yard touchdown drive in the first half that consumed 8 minutes, 57 seconds.

Nose tackle Tank Johnson, who expects to make an impact on the improved unit this season, was already looking ahead to next week. He had more of a glass-half-empty look at the game.

"We’re not dominant; we’re not the best," Johnson said. "We were good and we won. A win is a win. We’re not putting too much stock into beating a team in Week 1."

(star-telegram.com)

Wade Phillips mixed in a not-so-subtle message to Sunday's officiating crew while gushing about how good Browns TE Kellen Winslow Jr. is as a receiver.

"One-on-one, he's very adept at pushing off ... I mean, getting open," Phillips said with a wry smile. "I hope the officials note that."

For the record, Phillips said Jason Witten never, ever pushes off.

(cowboysblog.dallasnews.com)

The Cleveland Plain Dealer reports Browns HC Romeo Crennel said reports that he yelled at TE Kellen Winslow II on the sideline after a penalty and then benched him in the Giants game were exaggerated. "Because I talk to a guy, I'm not happy with him?" said Crennel. "No, I'm happy with Winslow. I'm glad he's on my team. If I had about 10 more like him, I might have a chance to win more games. I coach all of them and tell them what they need to hear at the time."

(ffmastermind.com)

BEREA — Kellen Winslow Jr. treats every Browns practice as if it were a regular-season contest.

The Pro Bowl tight end wears his full uniform and pads — even when the rest of the team is running around in shorts — and visualizes game situations on every play.

Winslow’s attention to detail served him well Wednesday, when he was the recipient of a helmet-to-helmet hit by cornerback Travis Key on a crossing pattern. The collision was clean and unintentional, but it certainly put a charge into an otherwise staid afternoon session.

“I’m a Hurricane, that’s how I play,” the University of Miami product said. “I try and simulate as much of a game as I can. It’s nothing personal what happened, but it got my teammates going, so that’s a good thing.”

While Winslow made the catch, the 5-foot-10 Key bounced off him like a rubber ball, then got an earful from the tight end as a group of defensive players chanted the rookie’s last name.

“I broke a little too fast trying to make a play because I wasn’t trying to do that,” Key said. “Obviously, he thought I was trying to hit him, but I was just flying around. We did talk after practice and cleared it up.”

Making amends with one of Cleveland’s top players was a smart move by Key, who only joined the club five days ago as an undrafted free agent.
It also was a necessary gesture after what transpired one play later.

Quarterback Derek Anderson called the same pass pattern to Winslow, who caught it without a problem. Key, however, snuck up behind him and prepared to swipe at the football as the action was winding down.

But Winslow anticipated the move, forcing the ex-Michigan State walk-on to, in Key’s words, “tuck and roll” out of the way to avoid a potentially major issue.

“I realized it wouldn’t be a good idea to do that,” Key said, laughing. “Everything is good now, though.”

The sequence brought back some good memories for Browns quarterback Ken Dorsey, who played with Winslow in college and has grown to appreciate his intensity.

Though Winslow did not begin wearing a full uniform in practice until last year, the backup signal caller said his temperament and attitude have always been the same.

“Kellen has his quirks, but he’s the most loyal teammate and the most trusted target you can have,” Dorsey said. “From his first day at Miami, everything he did was full speed, full go.

“It might not always be right, but it sets a tone. Having a guy like that makes everyone better, offense and defense, because they feed off how competitive he is.”

That was the case with the Hurricanes, where Winslow faced off against All-American DBs Sean Taylor, Ed Reed, Phillip Buchanan, Antrel Rolle, Kelly Jennings, Mike Rumph and others in the South Florida sun.

It also has played out that way in Cleveland, where Winslow provides daily lessons for the team’s defensive players.

“Those Miami guys were always chirping at each other, especially when we got down to the end of practice, but it made them better,” Dorsey said. “You can see the same is true here. When Kellen is going against (linebacker) Willie McGinest, that helps Kellen and Willie because they’re not going to go up against anyone tougher on other teams.”

If that competition means more lively scenes like what happened Wednesday, all involved say so be it.

“I want to be great, I don’t want to be good,” Winslow said. “I don’t want to be like everyone else. I want to be the best.”

(medinagazette.com)

TE Kellen Winslow II might have actually had a better week catching the ball than Edwards did. There's little reason to believe these guys won't pick up where they left off and even raise that bar this fall.



(ffmastermind.com)

BEREA Sometime this year, cool-talking, hot-blooded Kellen Winslow Jr. will say something that turns heads.

Or will he?

Winslow's outrageous "I'm a soldier" rant came down more than five years ago.

His infamous trip to Canton for a StarBoyz demonstration and subsequent motorcycle crash is three years in the rearview.

He has racked back-to-back years of 875 and 1,106 yards, is coming off a Pro Bowl and is acting like model-employee, establishment material.

"Coming out of college, I was probably viewed in a different light," Winslow said between training camp practices Thursday. "But I'm growing up. I'm 25 now. That stuff was a long time ago."

"Just like everybody else ... you have to grow up. I'm older and married now. I'm just ... grown up."

Even if he did turn 25 Monday, though, it'll be 25 years before he can get an AARP card. He's still young, ornery and outrageous, as in outrageously good.

Part of him still wants to say no other tight end can hang with him, although the grown-up part resists.

After he looked sleek and dangerous in practice, someone asked whether he sees the Sept. 7 opener in light of proving he's better than Cowboys Pro Bowler Jason Witten. After all, it was mentioned, Witten is the premier tight end in the NFC. Winslow is ranked third in the AFC by The Sporting News, behind Antonio Gates and Tony Gonzalez.

"You're trying to get me, man," Winslow said.

Giving the writer a friendly chuck on the arm, Winslow added, "I'm just trying to be the best player I can be. I'm giving you the politically correct answer on that one."

All grown up.

Winslow's contract issue, which factored into his staying away from voluntary spring practice, seems to be a non-issue as camp breaks a sweat.

"I just want to be a Cleveland Brown for a longer period of time," said Winslow, who is signed through 2010. "My agent (Drew Rosenhaus) and the organization are in talks. My job is to be out here playing football.

"If they do it, they do it. If they don't, they don't."

Coming off an 82-catch, Pro Bowl year in which he played all 16 games despite injury issues, did he consider holding out?

"I'm not that type of guy," Winslow said. "I don't want to be a distraction. My job's just to come out here and help this team win."

Winslow's 1,981 yards in back-to-back years is a club record. Hall of Famer Ozzie Newsome's best tandem years were 1983 and 1984, when he delivered 1,971 yards.

Predictably, Winslow wants the moon.

"I left a lot on the field last year," he said. "I watched the film and saw things I could have done better.

"I probably could have caught 100 balls. That's 18 more than I caught. Touchdowns ... I only had five. I can get a lot better in each category."

The Browns offense is hard to predict, since it has had just one breakout year.

"Charlie (Frye) was our quarterback last year," Winslow said. "It hasn't happened ever in history, but he was gone after one game. He was a good friend of mine.

"It's a cut-throat league. It's tough."

Not that Winslow isn't fired up about an offense coordinated by Rob Chudzinski, who was with him in his Miami (Fla.) days.

"Chud lives here at the facility," Winslow said in a reverent tone. "I don't know how he stays married.

"He's here all day, and he's the hardest-working coach I've ever seen. He's our captain, with Romeo. He's off the boards, man."

Meanwhile, the formerly troubled No. 6 overall pick of the 2004 draft now has two solid years on the NFL board.

He says his latest knee surgery was "just a minor scope." He's running free in practice, no longer a wild card as much as a reason for the other guys to worry.

(cantonrep.com)

BEREA, Ohio (AP) — Kellen Winslow could be home resting or relaxing on a beach in California with a cold drink as his teammates sweat through grueling two-a-day practices.

If he desired, the Pro Bowl tight end, who wants the Cleveland Browns to tear up his contract that still has three years left on it, could be just about anywhere but training camp.

Instead, Winslow is where he's happiest — on the field.

"My job," Winslow said Thursday following the team's first workout in full pads, "is to just be out here and play football. I don't want to be a distraction."

For a while, that's all he was.

Winslow, who came to the NFL with a fiery reputation, missed 14 games as a rookie in 2004 after breaking his leg. He was then sidelined for all the next season following a near-fatal motorcycle accident. But in the past two years, the 25-year-old has become one of the game's top tight ends, fulfilling the promise that the Hall of Famer's son always had.

However, until he arrived at camp this week, there was concern that Winslow would have a negative impact on the Browns even before their 2008 season kicked off.

Not long after making the Pro Bowl, Winslow hired super agent Drew Rosenhaus and made it known he wanted to be the league's highest paid tight end. Then, Winslow had surgery — at least his fourth procedure — on his right knee, which he wrecked in the crash and later became infected with staph.

In April, the Browns traded a future draft pick to select a tight end as a possible successor for Winslow, who then missed the Browns' voluntary practices in May and June. A contract holdout seemed imminent. Trouble, it seemed, was brewing.

This time, Winslow stiff-armed it. He's a happy camper.

"I'm sure (the media) thought I wasn't coming, but I'm not that type of guy," Winslow said. "I don't want to be a distraction. My job is to just help this team win and come out here and play to the best of my ability."

Rosenhaus has engaged in negotiations with the Browns. He characterized the talks as a "dialogue with the team. Nothing is imminent and we're at a very preliminary point." He has spoken with general manager Phil Savage and plans to visit Cleveland soon.

In the past, Rosenhaus has kept clients out of camp until they got paid. But he and Winslow decided not to use a contract holdout as leverage with the Browns.

"There is a sense of urgency on our end," Rosenhaus told The Associated Press. "Kellen and I have discussed it and we decided to take the high road and handle it professionally. There will be no holding out and there will be nothing that will keep Kellen off the field."

While not providing specifics on what he's seeking from the team, Rosenhaus did describe Winslow's rookie contract as "outdated."

The Browns, who initially withheld some bonuses from Winslow following his accident, have already reworked his contract once. Before his third season, they changed some of his performance clauses, allowing him to recoup some of the financial hit he took by missing most of his first two seasons.

Winslow said it's easy for him to separate off-the-field business from what he has do to between the hash marks.

"You can't focus on the contract. I am under contract. I just want to be a Cleveland Brown for a long time, so my agent and the organization are in talks," he said.

Winslow said he wouldn't be upset if the sides didn't agree to a new deal this year.

"It is up to them. If they don't do it, they don't do it. If they do it, they do it. My job is to just get out here and play," he said.

Getting ready to play each Sunday has been a challenge for Winslow. Last season, he often lugged around some type of medical apparatus to help his body recover from the pounding he'd take in games. If his shoulder wasn't aching, it was his knee.

But despite the bumps and bruises, Winslow caught 82 passes for 1,106 yards and five touchdowns to earn his first trip to Honolulu. He intends to go back.

"I left a lot on the field last year," he said. "I watched the film from last year, and saw things that I can do better. I probably could have caught 100 balls. Touchdowns, I only had five, so I can get a lot better in each category."

While his game has matured, Winslow has grown as a person. At the University of Miami, his infamous "I'm a soldier" rant during a postgame locker room tirade painted him as a hothead. And although he can still get edgy, Winslow has calmed down considerably.

"We all go through that maturation process and he's in the middle of it," Browns coach Romeo Crennel said. "We've seen him settle down from the first year I was here and he can manage himself better than he used to. He has a better understanding of how the team works and how he fits in the team and what is expected and required of him."

Winslow concedes he has changed — for the better.

"Coming out of college, I was probably viewed in a different light," he said. "I'm growing up. I'm 25 now. That stuff was a long time ago, and just like everyone else you have to grow up. I'm older now, married, and just grown up."

(cleveland.com)

With Cleveland Browns training camp opening today, there’s already a strong sense of anticipation for the upcoming season and the success many hope will come with it.

Last weekend at North Olmsted High School, nearly 120 youngsters got a taste of what it takes to get ready for the season as the Browns’ All-Pro tight end Kellen Winslow ran his first Kellen Winslow Football Camp. Boys from throughout the Cleveland area got to run drills and play actual games with Winslow and other pro players, including Browns backup quarterback Ken Dorsey and former Browns defensive back Leigh Bodden.

A number of local high school and college coaches ran various skill stations which specialized in the game’s basic fundamentals. The seven-on-seven games were a favorite part of the day, not only for the players but for the parents watching on the sidelines as well.

With Winslow being a receiver, a big emphasis of the camp was the passing game. Each youngster not only received two T-shirts, but a pair of receiver gloves as well.

The camp was run by ProCamps out of Cincinnati, which runs similar camps featuring professional players throughout the United States.
“We’ve been running these camps for about eight years now,” said Tim Boesken of ProCamps. “This year, we’ve got 22 camps like this, and it’s split around 50-50 between football and basketball. Dwayne Wade of the Miami Heat just finished a camp in Florida last week.

“We’ve also done a camp down in Cincinnati as a fund-raiser for the Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame, but mostly its football and basketball. We’re basically a one-stop shop for pro athletes who want to run camps like this. One thing we won’t do, though, is run a camp for an athlete who won’t be there to participate. This is our first camp in the Cleveland area,” he said.

Winslow’s camp also partnered with the Boys & Girls Club of Cleveland. “We offer up to 50 scholarships at our camps,” said Boesken. “We always want to make sure that kids who want to participate can do so, and they get all of the things the other children get, the T-shirts, the gloves, lunch, the whole thing.

“We’re able to do that through our sponsorships, and there are times that we get additional sponsors and can offer more than 50 spots,” he added.

Later in the morning, there was also a training session on one of the side fields for high school players. Most of the players were from Lakewood, John Marshall and Rhodes. Instructors from Ignition Athletics Performance Group of Cincinnati ran players through a number of conditioning drills, showing various dynamic stretches and putting them through a plyometrics workout.

“We think it’s important to help develop the youth of our community, to develop their potential,” said Sgt. Joshua Nitz of the Lakewood recruiting office of the U.S. Army. The Army sponsored the conditioning event, along with the National Football League.

“Whether they wind up joining the Army or not isn’t the big thing here,” said Sgt. Nitz, who along with fellow soldiers were dressed in full fatigues despite the hot, humid conditions. “We know that the same principals used to be successful on the football field are the same ones you need to be successful in life.

“This is one of our favorite things to do. Our slogan is now ‘Army Strong. Family Strong. Community Strong,’ and we enjoy getting out of the office and away from the paper work and doing things like this to make our community better,” he added.

But the big star of the day was Winslow, who was there from beginning to end. He and Dorsey, who led the University of Miami to the National Championship game against Ohio State, showed campers how to run a variety of pass routes, along with little tips on how to get their feet in bounds on the sidelines and how to catch the ball with their fingertips.

“I use these gloves because I like to catch the ball on my fingertips,” he explained to the campers. “I practice over and over, and that’s one of the reasons I have soft hands. You don’t ever want to see the palm of your hand on the football.

“You want to have soft hands, but you have to have strong hands as well. I think that’s the most important thing to work on,” he added.

Dorsey threw a number of passes to the young players during the drills, but so did Winslow. When the seven-on-seven games got underway, Winslow quarterbacked both teams on his field. Youngsters had the thrill of catching a Winslow pass, some of them for touchdowns.

Some of them went for interceptions as well, but a smiling Winslow didn’t seem to mind.

He even brushed off a botched play as he slipped to the turf when he rolled out of the pocket. Everyone simply went on to the next play with the anticipation of catching Winslow’s next aerial.

At the end of the day, Winslow talked to the players about working together as a team, that football is a team game.

“It’s all about being unselfish,” Winslow told them. “There are going to be times when your number isn’t called. We’ve got guys like Braylon Edwards and Joe Jurevicius. Maybe I have to run a route to clear out a defensive back so Braylon can make the play. I’m a tight end, so maybe I have to make a block for Jamal Lewis.

“It’s all about helping the team win,” said Winslow. “You’re going to get the ball, but you’re not going to get it all the time because it’s a team game.”

(westlifenews.com)

3. Kellen Winslow, Cleveland Browns. With 171 receptions over the past two seasons, Winslow has finally become the star everyone projected him to be. His rare combination of size, speed, and athleticism makes him a matchup nightmare, and his ability to align just about anywhere on the field opens up several options for the Browns' offense.

5. Jeremy Shockey, New York Giants. Shockey's greatest weaknesses are his head and his mouth. If he would just stop complaining long enough, he would be recognized for the outstanding receiving threat he is. He is also a better blocker than most think -- he just doesn't like to block.

Click here to see the rest of the rankings.

There were times in the Browns' off-season when it appeared Kellen Winslow might be a negative issue in 2008.

He started talking about wanting a new contract at the Super Bowl. He had another knee surgery -- his fourth, at least -- after the Pro Bowl.

In April, the Browns traded a future draft choice to pick a tight end, Winslow's possible successor. Then Winslow missed all of the team's voluntary off-season practices in May and June.

But on Saturday, Winslow sounded very much like the football "warrior" beloved by his teammates.

"We have a lot to prove. I can't wait. I wish the [first] game was tomorrow," he said.

Winslow is so eager to get back to work, he jump-started his season by hosting a youth football camp this weekend at North Olmsted High School. Quarterback Ken Dorsey joined him.

In an interview at the camp, Winslow left no doubt about his dedication to his team and his career.

• On the health of his right knee, severely injured in his 2005 motorcycle accident:
"It's been a long [time] since the accident. I still have to rehab. It's tough, but nothing's going to stop me from my dream. I'm ready.

"I think I've put in the time, the hard work, this season. My first year back, I couldn't run as much as I'd like. But last year I was in pretty good shape coming back to training camp and I think I'm in good shape now.

"I've had [so many] operations, I don't even remember what I had. The point is, I'm ready. Nothing's going to stop me from being ready for the season and stopping my dream."

• On pacing himself during training camp:
"I'll take it day by day. Training camp is a grind. You have to be smart, take care of your body. I have to get better and get ready for the season."

• On the status of his request for a new contract, with three years remaining on his current one:
"It's not up to me. It's up to the Browns and my agent. They're talking. My job is to play football to the best of my ability. The only reason I want an extension, I want to be a Cleveland Brown for a long time.

"I want to be here with Romeo [Crennel, head coach] and [offensive coordinator Rob] Chudzinski and our quarterbacks and Braylon [Edwards], the whole team. I love this town."

• On his reaction to the Browns drafting tight end Martin Rucker:
"We're playing for now. It's all about now. Martin Rucker's a young guy I'm going to try to take under my wing, show him the ropes. He's got a lot of talent. He can help us win."

• On the difference this year in knowing Derek Anderson is the starting quarterback instead of having a "competition" in camp:
"Well, all three quarterbacks are competing. Obviously, Derek did a fine job last season. I think the big thing is that we protected him. The five offensive linemen, even the guys behind the five starters, did a great job. It helps a lot from previous years.

"Whoever's in there, we support. Nobody talks about Dorsey. Dorsey does so much for this team. He helps out Brady Quinn and Derek Anderson so much, and Chudzinski. He does a lot for the team he doesn't get a lot of credit for."

• On staying in San Diego and skipping voluntary team practices:
"Do you think I wasn't working out? You know what, when I got hurt my first year, I was there the whole year at the Cleveland Browns training facility. When I got hurt my second year in the accident, I was there the whole year. Third year, I was there the whole year. And the fourth year, I was there. So I needed a break. And my wife needed a break. We wanted to go back to our hometown and just get away from the facility because it does wear down on you a little bit. We just wanted to get away."

• On handling lofty expectations and a marquee schedule, including five prime-time network games:
"I hope we rise to the challenge. We didn't meet the challenge last year. We have a lot to prove. I can't wait to get started. I wish the [first] game was tomorrow. We have to get our minds right. The first game against the Cowboys, that's going to be the biggest game of the year, I think."

(blog.cleveland.com)

NORTH OLMSTED: Browns Mini Camp is less than a week away and one player is getting an early start.

Kellen Winslow Jr. is one of many pro's that are taking part in a youth football camp being held at North Olmsted High School Friday.

The Browns tight end threw the ball around, huddled, ran and gave the kids some football tips.

The football camp runs from July 18-20 and is for all football players between 7 and 14 years old. The other pro's that will take part throughout the weekend: Browns' Braylon Edwards, Ken Dorsey and Detroit Lions' Leigh Bodden.

Our Channel 3 News crews say there could be some future Browns stars in the making.

(wkyc.com)

22. Reggie Wayne, WR, Indianapolis Colts: When Marvin Harrison was out last season, Wayne emerged as the team's go-to receiver. The guess here is that is that it stays that way. He's a true star now.

23. Ed Reed, S, Baltimore Ravens: He is the prototype modern safety: rangy and can still tackle. He is what safeties like Roy Williams wish they could be.

26. Andre Johnson, WR, Houston Texans: Injuries limited him last season, but Johnson is one of the best when he's on the field. The Texans were a different team without him last season.

41. Vince Wilfork, DT, New England Patriots: He was the best front-seven player on the Pats defense last season. He's a load in the middle. Moving him off the ball is tough for any center.

44. Kellen Winslow, TE, Cleveland Browns: He has emerged as one of the rising stars for a rising team. His ability to stretch the defense is vital to the Cleveland offense.

50. Devin Hester, KR, Chicago Bears: I don't normally put return men on these lists, but this guy has earned it. It will be interesting to see how long he can maintain it.

(cbs.sportsline.com)

BEREA Kellen Winslow Jr. suited up for Tuesday's practice but declined to talk to reporters.

Instead, he showed off for them.

At least, it was clear Winslow was trying extremely hard to impress someone, if only himself, during Tuesday afternoon's minicamp practice.

Nobody ran harder or ripped off cuts more sharply than the 24-year-old Pro Bowl tight end.

He was a sight to behold, serving notice he's preparing for a career year.

One drill was particularly interesting. Receivers had to run behind two props the size of a tall cornerback. Assistant coach Frank Verducci fired passes that in some cases got through the props and in some cases took crazy bounces, making it a good idea to have one's helmet strapped on tight.

On one trip through, Winslow failed to make a catch, let out a little curse, then immediately hustled back in line to take an extra throw. After Verducci gave him that throw, too wide to catch, the chippy Winslow said, "That was unrealistic."

Winslow hasn't been around for most of the offseason program. He told public-relations people he won't talk to media today or Thursday, either.

"He wasn't here during the OTAs, so we have to see where he is," Head Coach Romeo Crennel said. "The more he can do, then the more we will let him do. So that's what the medical staff is for."

Winslow had minor knee surgery in the offseason and made noise about getting paid more.

Edwards and Winslow seem to enjoy standing out in a crowd. Edwards wore brown sweatpants. Winslow wore white football pants. Almost every other player was dressed in orange shorts.

One gets the idea Winslow and Edwards are motivated in part by outdoing each other.

(cantonrep.com)

Kellen Winslow (knee) and DB Gary Baxter (knee) will participate at Browns minicamp on a "limited" basis, according to GM Phil Savage.
Baxter needs to get healthy to have any chance of making the roster. Winslow had his surgery in mid-February, so it's surprising that he's not at full strength roughly four months later. The procedure was originally reported as a scope, and the recovery time for those can be as brief as two to four weeks.

The Browns are in no hurry to sign tight end Kellen Winslow to the big new contract that he's seeking.

"We don't have a lot of wiggle room right now at this particular time," said Browns General Manager Phil Savage Tuesday night at a civic event at the Ohio Theatre. "Only time will tell if it goes one direction or the other, but I think we've let it be known kind of where we are."

Savage said he expects Winslow to show up for minicamp next Tuesday through Thursday. "Of course, it's a mandatory camp, so the expectation is he'll be here," said Savage.

Winslow has been absent from the four weeks of organized team activities, but agent Drew Rosenhaus said last week on YouTube that his client only stayed away because he was rehabbing his scoped right knee at home in San Diego. He said Winslow will attend minicamp.

But Rosenhaus and Winslow have made it clear that they want to re-do the deal, which has three years remaining at $4 million, $4.5 million and $4.75 million. The reference point for Winslow's camp is believed to be the 6-year, $42 million deal signed recently by tight end Dallas Clark.

"Drew and I are very friendly and we get along well," said Savage. "We've had the lines of communication open throughout this whole thing."

Even if Winslow does attend the minicamp, he might be limited because of the knee, which was scoped in February. Coach Romeo Crennel, who also spoke at the conference, said he still hasn't talked to Winslow.

(blog.cleveland.com)

Player, position, injury: Kellen Winslow Jr., TE, arthroscopic right knee surgery.

Rehab status: Winslow had a cleanout procedure this offseason and is rehabbing in his hometown of San Diego. His absence from organized team activities has caused a bigger stir than necessary in Cleveland because Winslow expressed displeasure with his contract at the Pro Bowl. But agent Drew Rosenhaus cleared the air last week, saying Winslow will be in mandatory minicamp beginning June 10.

Next step: When Winslow arrives, he probably will watch from the sideline until training camp. Cleveland has suffered enough injuries as it is this spring (cornerback Daven Holly, receiver Braylon Edwards, tight end Steve Heiden and offensive lineman Ryan Tucker. All were injured during "voluntary" workouts.

Fantasy spin: There's no question Winslow's knee issues figure into his fantasy value, making him a high-risk, high-reward guy for '08. He has 100-catch upside as basically another wide receiver down the middle of the field, and it wouldn't be shocking to see him top last season's five touchdowns. But if Winslow misses significant time, it's hard to say that any other tight end in Cleveland will have much fantasy impact, since Heiden is recovering from disk surgery. In fact, the biggest beneficiaries would probably be Donte' Stallworth and Joe Jurevicius, who would surely see more targets.

Player, Position, Injury: Andre Johnson, WR, injured left knee.

Rehab status: A knee problem forced Johnson to miss seven games last season, but team doctors didn't see a need to perform surgery at first. The injury knee flared up during a recent minicamp and Johnson had arthroscopic surgery to "clean up" the joint in mid-May. The rehab process is just beginning.

Next step: Johnson is missing an entire month of organized team activities, but the team and Johnson remain optimistic he'll be ready for the start of training camp.

Fantasy Spin: The fact that Johnson went ahead and had arthroscopic knee surgery may be a good thing for his '08 value. Maybe it means he'll stay healthy this season. He showed good chemistry with Matt Schaub in the brief period when both men were healthy in '07, and upped his yards per reception by more than three, a great indication that the Texans hope to use him downfield more. Johnson is still a top-five fantasy receiver, but considering his left knee has bugged him for nine months, he's definitely an injury risk. If he gets hurt again, Andre' Davis and Jacoby Jones would be the beneficiaries.

(espn.com)

Kellen Winslow missing voluntary workouts isn’t a big deal except that the Browns keep saying they don’t know why the tight end isn’t in Berea, as if they haven’t even been in touch with him.

Also, you would think Winslow, even though he’s still rehabbing from his latest knee surgery and unable to practice, would want to be with his teammates. You know, the whole espirit de corps thing, especially with such an important season ahead.

Then again, where would you want to spend time, San Diego or Cleveland?

Anyway, at least we got to see more of celebrity agent Drew Rosenhaus, who released another of his infamous YouTube videos this week rather than return phone calls from reporters wondering whether this is the prelude to a Winslow contract holdout.

Here’s the text of Rosenhaus’ statement:

“A lot of members of the Cleveland media have been calling me wanting to know why Kellen has not been in the OTAs, meaning organized team activities.

“I always say these are voluntary activities. They are not mandatory. And a player has the right to train on his own. Kellen is coming off offseason knee surgery and he’s doing his rehab and his training with a very fine trainer in his hometown of San Diego.

“He will be at the Browns’ mandatory minicamp (June 10-12) and he will be at the mandatory training camp. So, what’s the big to do?”

Well, if there’s any “to do” whatsoever, it concerns the fact that Winslow, when interviewed on satellite radio at the Pro Bowl, made it clear in no uncertain terms that he wants his contract redone even though it has three years remaining and the Browns have been generous to a fault with him.

Will Winslow and Rosenhaus seek to use all their leverage to get this done before the start of the season? The Browns allowed for the possibility of a holdout by drafting a tight end, Missouri’s Martin Rucker, in the fourth round last month.

Rosenhaus’ smarmy smile on that YouTube video can’t put anyone at ease, although he does not raise the contract issue.

“Guys have the opportunity to choose whether or not they want to go to these voluntary functions, and there shouldn’t be so much scrutiny on players who choose to work out on their own,” Rosenhaus said. “Kellen’s going to be ready to go and everything is going to be fine with him.”

We’ll see.

(daytondailynews.com)

Kellen Winslow Jr's agent, Drew Rosenhaus, says that his client will be attending the June mini-camp in Cleveland, and will be attending training camp.

Rosenhaus, appearing on Sprint's Youtube channel, declared that Winslow would not miss any of the full camps which follow the OTAs (Organized team activities).

"These are voluntary activities.", Rosenhaus said on the short video. "They are not mandatory, and a player has a right to train on his own. Kellen is coming off of an off-season knee surgery, and he is doing his rehabilitation and his training with a very fine trainer in his hometown of San Diego.

He will be at the Browns mandatory mini-camp and he will be at the mandatory training camp."

Rosenhaus also took some of his time to lecture the Cleveland media a bit.

"What's the big to-do? Guys have the opportunity to choose whether they want to go to these voluntary functions, and there shouldn't be so much scrutiny on players who choose to work out on their own."

It should probably be noted that players missing OTAs are relatively rare, and that Rosenhaus himself created some of the confusion with his responses to questions from the News-Herald's Jeff Schudel last February.

Rosenhaus' comments should be re-assuring to Browns fans however:

"Kellen's going to be ready to go and everything should be just fine with him", the agent concluded, "We're looking forward to him getting back to Cleveland for the mandatory mini-camp later on this month".  

(cle.scout.com)

That vision General Manager Phil Savage has of tight ends Kellen Winslow Jr. and Martin Rucker splitting the defense will have to be put on hold for a while.

Both players were absent Wednesday in the second day of the Browns' Organized Team Activities, better known as OTAs.

Five veterans were missing - Winslow, tight end Steve Heiden, wide receiver Joe Jurevicius, linebacker D'Qwell Jackson and offensive lineman LeCharles Bentley.

Heiden (back) and Jurevicius (knee) were in the complex working out after offseason surgeries. Jurevicius had additional complications from a staph infection.

The Browns claim they do not know why Winslow is rehabbing from knee surgery in San Diego rather than in Berea. Winslow has said he wants a new contract, even though he has three years remaining on his current deal. Winslow's agent, Drew Rosenhaus, did not return messages left on his phone.

Rosenhaus declined to answer when asked in February whether he would hold Winslow out of training camp. Training camp begins the last week in July.

"When (Winslow) gets here, we'll find out for sure what that (reason) is," Coach Romeo Crennel said. "He isn't here, and I haven't spoken with him since February. When he gets here, I'll be able to answer that question."

None of the rookies are in the OTAs yet because they are not allowed to practice before their senior class graduates. The first day they can participate in the OTAs is Tuesday.

(zwire.com)

The Browns are apparently interpreting Kellen Winslow's absence from voluntary organized team activities -- and silence -- as a statement about his contract.

Asked Wednesday if it was health-related, coach Romeo Crennel said, "When he gets here we'll find out for sure exactly what that is. He's not here and I haven't spoken with him."

But Crennel didn't seem surprised by the no-show.

"There's something that happens every year with somebody," he said. "We've just got to get this team ready."

He said the last time he talked to Winslow was in January or February. Winslow has been rehabbing his surgically-repaired knee in San Diego since then, but his absence most of the off-season is believed to be related to wanting a new deal. The 12 voluntary practices lead up to a mandatory minicamp June 10-12.

"It's not a big deal," Josh Cribbs said. "If he was here, he'd be hurt."

Cribbs added, "It's not a question of his character because he plays like a soldier. When he gets here he's going to work his butt off."
Said Braylon Edwards: "Everybody goes through personal trials and tribulations. If he has something going on that the team is aware of, that's his business."

Fellow tight end Darnell Dinkins said, "We all know he's dealing with certain things. Kellen made the Pro Bowl. When he's with us, he competes. Nobody else is going to contribute more than that."

Team leader Willie McGinest said he'd talk to Winslow if the team asked him to. "I'm like a big brother to him," McGinest said. "We're all supposed to be brothers and family around here."

(blog.cleveland.com)

Hey, did you hear the one about the pro athlete who had a good season and immediately wanted to renegotiate his contract? Even after he failed to play up to his potential for the first three years of his career due?

Unfortunately, it’s no joke.

It seems like every year we are subjected to the whining of athletes who, even though they are under contract, either want to get a new and improved deal, get traded, or both.

Thus far, Kellen Winslow Jr., hasn’t issued a trade demand. But for a guy who has, in my opinion, already struck out with many Browns fans, a holdout that includes a demand to be traded would simply by the icing on the cake.

Winslow, the Browns’ first-round draft choice in 2004, had strike one on him before he ever played in a game. That’s because he chose to be a holdout from training camp his rookie season. The only thing he caught during his holdout was the wrath of then-Browns quarterback Jeff Garcia, who openly criticized the son of Hall of Famer KellenWinslow Sr.

Winslow, who had gained a reputation of being a selfish athlete while playing for the Miami Hurricanes, certainly did nothing to change those views by his untimely holdout.

Winslow’s second strike came when he once again put his own self ahead of the team by recklessly riding a super-charged motorcycle following the 2004 season, a season in which he only played in only two games due to a right fibula injury he suffered in Week 2.
 
He’s managed to come back from the extensive injuries suffered in his careless accident, but he’s admittedly not the same player he was prior to his ill-advised adventures.

Now, as the Browns approach what promises to be a very exciting season, it sounds like he’s willing to take a called third strike by putting his own selfish desires ahead of the good of the team.

If he misses any time whatsoever due to his hopes to renegotiate his contract, it will, in my opinion, be the final straw. It will show once and for all that, no matter what he has said over the past couple of years and no matter how good the team might be, that he is still a selfish, self-centered prima donna who cares more about himself than his teammates, coaches and, oh yeah, the fans.

The Browns were concerned enough that general manager Phil Savage had to mortgage a small part of the team’s future in order to move up in this year’s draft to pick tight end Martin Rucker out of the University of Missouri in the fourth round.

The trade cost the Browns a third-round pick next year. Not exactly an earth-shaking trade by any means, but one that apparently the team deemed necessary due in part of Winslow’s public announcement that he wants a new contract. To be fair, it was also in part due to the fact both Winslow and backup tight end Steve Heiden will probably be limited in upcoming camps due to off-season surgeries.

It should be noted that Winslow’s surgery was his fourth that is a direct result of his motorcycle accident. It also must be noted that he has three years remaining on his contract. And it also needs to be noted that he did play in his first Pro Bowl this past February, albeit as an alternate.

Is Winslow worth more money just because San Diego tight end Antonio Gates suffered an injury that kept him out of the Pro Bowl and opened the door for the Browns’ tight end?

There doesn’t seem to be much logic in that. Nor is there much logic in tearing up the contract of a guy who never has and likely never will live up to his potential due, as previously mentioned, to his own selfish, self-centered prima donna attitude?

Probably the best thing I can say about Kellen Winslow Jr., is that at least he’s not as openly arrogant and as much of a trouble maker as Chad Johnson … at least not yet.

(cle.scout.com)

Longevity issues with Kellen Winslow and a potential contract dispute factored into the Browns making a surprise trade in the fourth round of the draft Sunday.

They gave up their 2009 third-round pick to select pass-catching tight end Martin Rucker of Missouri.

It was the second deal in a matter of minutes for Trader Phil Savage, both times with the Dallas Cowboys, the team that provided the Browns the picks to select Brady Quinn and Eric Wright in draft-day trades last year.

But less than 30 minutes after trading for Bell, Savage hit the speed dial for Jerry Jones again and acquired the Cowboys' next pick, 111th overall, to select Rucker.

The fact Savage did not hesitate to pay the third-round price for Rucker speaks to concerns about Winslow's recurring knee problems and his stated desire for a new contract.

"We really like Martin Rucker, but I think that always has to be in the backdrop," Savage said of the Winslow issues.

Winslow had another surgical procedure on his battered right knee in February. That was at least the fourth surgery on the knee injured in his 2005 motorcycle accident. He also had surgery on a broken right fibula and torn ankle ligaments in 2004.

Winslow openly admits he's not the player he could have been. But after earning a trip to the Pro Bowl as an alternate prior to the latest surgery, he went public with his desire for a new contract. Savage and agent Drew Rosenhaus have had conversations about it, but nothing has been resolved.

"You're talking about a player who has three years left on his deal," Savage said.

Winslow has never indicated he would hold out this summer if he didn't get a new deal. But Savage made a telling comment when defending the trade for Rucker.

"It may not be a need today, but as we found out a few years ago it could be a need in a week, two weeks or two months," he said.

No. 2 tight end Steve Heiden also had surgery recently on a bulging disk, but Savage said there is no present concern that Winslow and/or Heiden would miss the start of training camp on July 23.

Beyond the Winslow factor, however, the Browns graded out Rucker as another player worthy of second-round consideration. In fact, six weeks before Savage dealt his second-round pick to Green Bay for defensive end Corey Williams, he presented his staff a list with a dozen offensive players and a dozen on defense to consider in the second round. Bell and Rucker were on the lists, he said.

Rucker, 6-5 and 251 pounds, led all collegiate tight ends with 84 catches for Missouri. Coincidentally, Winslow's father, the Hall of Famer, previously set records at Missouri, which Rucker shattered.

Savage said that he envisioned Winslow and Rucker splitting defensive seams together on opposite ends of the field. He said that offensive coordinator Rob Chudzinski, a former tight end as a player and position coach, would have no problem creating schemes to include both players.

"He's certainly capable of being a starting tight end in this league," Savage said.

(plaindealer.com)

A new contract for Kellen Winslow is now on the team's radar. This week at the NFL owners meetings, General Manager Phil Savage will meet with Winslow's agent, Drew Rosenhaus. Winslow hired Rosenhaus last year in anticipation of a forthcoming contract extension. Winslow made the Pro Bowl last year as an alternate and played in the game. He has three years left on his contract, which was extended by one year after the Browns restructured it in the wake of Winslow's 2005 motorcycle accident.

(blog.cleveland.com)

The Cleveland Browns now have two perennial Pro Bowl players who are looking for a new contract. Those two players are receiver Braylon Edwards and tight end Kellen Winslow. With the Browns signing Shaun Rogers to a big contract extension, this will definitely light the fire under these two players to speak even louder. In this article we will highlight Kellen Winslow and his desire to get a new contract and if he even deserves one.

Without a doubt, no one can deny the pure athletic ability that Winslow has and he definitely will have a bright future in the NFL.  However in May of 2005, Winslow who read the rules of the contract (we hope) before he signed it, showed how young he truly is when he got into a motorcycle accident that tore his ACL and brought an end to his 2005 season. Winslow who signed a six-year, $40 million dollar contract in 2004, was in jeopardy of losing a huge majority of that due to breaching a hazardous activities clause in his contract.

To be honest, the Cleveland Browns had every single right to take back the $6 million dollar signing bonus and the $4.4 million dollar option bonus that he was paid in March of 2005 just two months prior to the accident.  This would be Winslow’s second season that he would miss, with Winslow breaking his leg in game 2 of the 2004 season. Click here to continue reading...

The way we hear it, Browns TE Kellen Winslow isn't limping after undergoing offseason microfracture knee surgery. Winslow and RB Jamal Lewis have been the team's best offensive players in camp by a long shot, we're told.

(pfw.com)

BEREA, Ohio -- To this point in the brief but brittle professional tenures of Cleveland Browns tight end Kellen Winslow and wide receiver Braylon Edwards, their résumés have been defined as much by broken bones as game-breaking plays.

Chosen among the top six players in consecutive NFL drafts, the tandem has registered more letdowns than touchdowns. Expected to emerge as the twin playmakers for the young Cleveland offense, Edwards and Winslow instead have become conjoined by misfortune and disappointment and the dreaded stigma of potential unfulfilled.

And now, at a seeming crossroads for them and for this franchise, they are drawn together by a shared determination to relegate whatever transpired in the past to the dustbin of history.

Best Player: There are people in camp that are just going out there and playing tremendous, and one of those men is Kellen Winslow. Amidst all of the drops in camp, Winslow is catching every single ball that is thrown to him, including some of the ones that originally appear out of his each. On Tuesday, he was able to haul on a pass from Frye down the sideline, catching over defensive back Jereme Perry.

(dawgsbynatue.com)

Tight end Kellen Winslow Jr. played through pain in his right knee last season because he felt he owed the Browns after his season-ending motorcycle accident in 2005.

But he underwent microfracture surgery on the knee Jan. 30 to alleviate that pain and participated in contract drills Saturday just six months after the controversial procedure.

"It's a lot stronger than it was last year," said Winslow in his first interview since the surgery. "It's the first day back, my legs are underneath me and I'm just getting healthy."

BEREA: With a 4-12 season winding down in 2006, Kellen Winslow could have decided to stop playing in pain.

But that thought never crossed his mind, even though the Cleveland Browns' tight end was still feeling the effects of reconstruction of his right knee, which he injured in a May 2005 motorcycle accident.

He practiced sparingly during the season but never missed a game, finishing with 89 catches. That not only ranked ninth in the NFL, and first at his position, but also tied hall of fame tight end Ozzie Newsome's team record for most receptions in a season.

‘‘From the start of the season, it wasn't where I wanted it to be,‘‘ Winslow said of his knee. ‘‘I felt I owed the Cleveland Browns last season. It was very difficult what I went through coming off my injury, but I think I did pretty well.

‘‘This is the game I love to play. This is all I want to do. I love being out there with my team. It's the greatest place to be.‘‘

It doesn't take a genius to identify Kellen Winslow as a dynamic, game-changing type of player.

But when new offensive coordinator Rob Chudzinski was told Winslow called him "a genius" after Saturday's practice, Chudzinski graciously accepted such kudos.

"I haven't been called that too much in my life," Chudzinski said. "I'll take it."

Browns fans are hoping the mutual admiration society Winslow and Chudzinski have formed -- both are former University of Miami tight ends now enjoying their third different player-coach relationship -- is just beginning to grow.

Genius calls the plays, star tight end makes them happen. Seems simple enough, doesn't it?

"I think (Chudzinski) is the best coach in the NFL," Winslow said. "He's awesome. He's great to have around."

League sources have informed The Orange and Brown Report that the team has officially changed Kellen Winslow's roster status to "Active/Physically Unable to Perform". 

According to Scout.com's Adam Caplan, Winslow can be removed from this status at any time up until the point that final rosters are set. At that point, the team would have to remove him from PUP status, or he would not be able to play for the first six weeks of the season.

At present, though, the designation opens up an additional roster spot on the team.  

Speculating, the roster status change likely means that Winslow won't be used in the opening days of training camp, and the Browns wish to use another roster spot either to evaluate a player or bring in another tight end to run plays starting on Friday.

The OBR's Lane Adkins comments that the status change "comes as no surprise, as Winslow was to be limited at best in the beginning stages of training camp".

(scout.com)

In news that can't possibly be good for the Cleveland Browns, tight end Kellen Winslow has hired Drew Rosenhaus as his new agent, Pro Football Talk is reporting.
Rosenhaus is the best-known player agent in the NFL, and he's well known in large part because his clients so often demand more money. Several players who have fired their previous agents and hired Rosenhaus have then had disruptive contract disputes, most famously Terrell Owens with the Philadelphia Eagles.

That doesn't mean Winslow will have a disruptive contract dispute, but Rosenhaus won't get a percentage of Winslow's paycheck unless he gets Winslow a new contract, so it stands to reason that Rosenhaus wants to get Winslow a new contract.

Would the Browns consider it? It's tough to say. Winslow has been a good tight end when he's gotten on the field, but the knee he injured in a motorcycle crash after his rookie year will never be 100 percent. The team will most likely tell Winslow he needs to wait a while before they'd consider a new deal. And Rosenhaus clients aren't known for their patience.

(aolsportsblog.com)

K2 Watch: Minicamp ended without tight end Kellen Winslow Jr. participating. He appears to be in great shape, but he has not fully recovered from microfracture surgery on his right knee Jan. 30. Winslow is declining interview requests until he can practice.

(brownsinsider.com)

He may be a M-Fing soldier, but Kellen Winslow will still be laid up in a M*A*S*H unit when training camp begins.

It's possible to view this as good news or bad news, but when training camp begins Kellen Winslow won't be at full speed. But considering that microfracture surgery is still a somewhat risky surgery, the fact that the Browns expect him to be ready to practice at all when training camp begins seems like a pretty good sign.

WInslow apparently will practice once a day to give his knee some rest and if it acts up, he'll take days off. It may mean that he'll take a little longer to absorb the new offense, but if he can be ready by Game 1, the Browns should be thrilled.

(aolsportsblog.com)

Tight end Kellen Winslow Jr. picked up his activity. He didn't wear shorts and helmet like his teammates, but Winslow jumped in on a few drills involving multiple tight end formations.

(blog.cleveland.com)

Browns tight end Kellen Winslow had a good season in 2006, and he may have a long and successful NFL career. But one thing is clear: He'll never be 100 percent recovered from the serious knee injury he suffered when he crashed his motorcycle two years ago.

Winslow had microfracture surgery on the knee in January, and the Cleveland Plain Dealer reports today that he'll be limited at the start of training camp. While the rest of his teammates are going through two-a-days, Winslow will most likely just practice once a day, and he'll be given extra days off to rest the knee.

That means he'll have fewer repetitions in the Browns' new offense, and fewer opportunities to develop a rapport with rookie quarterback Brady Quinn. Then again, Winslow already knows new offensive coordinator Rob Chudzinski's style from their time together at the University of Miami, and Quinn might not be in training camp anyway.

Winslow should be ready to play by September, and he should have another productive season. But it's hard not to get the sense that all he'll ever be is a good football player -- and if he had never gotten on a motorcycle he would have been great.

(aolsportsblog.com)

This and that from a Browns offseason practice... with the proviso that only so much can be gleaned from a workout that was voluntary and included no contact...

Tight end Kellen Winslow did not participate in the practice and probably won't take part until training camp. But if looks mean anything, he's doing fine in his comeback. Winslow walked out to the practice about midway through -- he was inside doing rehab -- and looked as fit as ever. He barely had a limp, wore no brace or sleeve on his knee, and when he jogged about 10 yards, he did so with no limitation. He still has to prove he can come back from microfracture surgery, but if looks mean anything, he's on track.

(ohio.com)

BEREA — Questions remain about two of the Browns’ offseason injury issues.

Coach Romeo Crennel said Saturday that tight end Kellen Winslow will likely miss the June minicamp as he recovers from microfracture knee surgery that was performed in late January. Center LeCharles Bentley, who missed the entire 2006 season with a torn patella tendon, has to decide if he wants to have another surgery or continue with rehabilitation.

The chances Bentley will return next season appear remote. He suffered a setback when developing a staph infection in the surgically-repaired knee last September.

“He has to make that decision,” Crennel said of Bentley. “No one else can make it for him. He’ll make the decision that’s best for him.”

BEREA Kellen Winslow should be ready for training camp, Gary Baxter’s rehab is going “extremely well” and LeCharles Bentley remains on course for season-ending surgery.

So said Browns General Manager Phil Savage, who updated the surgically repaired players’ progress Thursday on the Browns’ AM radio flagship, WTAM.

An Internet report as to Winslow possibly sitting out the 2007 season — he had recent knee surgery — got Browns fans buzzing last week.

“The procedure was done to help him be better this year than he was last year,” Savage said. “Toward the end of the year, he did struggle some from that knee. We feel like he’ll be back. He’s been around the building. He should be good to go in June or July.

Kellen Winslow got at least a little bit of his much needed, much desired time away.

But being back on the rehab trail hasn't drained Winslow's energy or enthusiasm. And not only is Winslow still focused on returning to health, he thinks new Browns' offensive coordinator Rob Chudzinski can help him top his record-setting 2006 season when he does.

"I'm good, very good," Winslow said Monday evening, speaking from his Cleveland-area home. "I got some real good news when Coach Chud came back here, and he's going to be real good for the offense. He's going to get everybody on the same page.

"That is a blessing. And I'm excited to get healthy and get to work."

BEREA – The Browns assumed an attitude of “don’t dignify it with a response” to a report Kellen Winslow Jr. might not play in 2007.

General Manager Phil Savage did not respond to the report. The team’s media relations department referred reporters to Savage’s Feb. 20 statement about Winslow’s offseason knee surgery: “If you see him around, he will be on crutches for a few more weeks. We expect him to be back and ready to go sometime in June or July. I don’t know if that will include (organized team activities).”

The report had some Browns’ fans in a lather, and the effect multiplied when WKNR-AM 850 made it the theme of its talk shows.

CLEVELAND -- Kellen Winslow has to make another comeback. The Browns' talented tight end underwent microfracture surgery on his right knee last month, a more extensive procedure than was initially revealed and one that will require a longer recovery. Winslow, who tied a team record for receptions last season despite missing nearly two seasons with injuries and being slowed by a bad knee, remains on crutches following the Jan. 30 operation to remove scar tissue and repair cartilage. Microfracture surgery involves drilling holes into bone in the knee to promote blood flow and form scar tissue, which replaces any damaged cartilage.

CLEVELAND (AP) - Kellen Winslow underwent microfracture surgery on his right knee last month, a more extensive procedure than was initially revealed and one that will require a longer recovery.

The Browns' tight end, who tied a team record for receptions last season despite being slowed by a bad knee, remains on crutches following the Jan. 30 operation to remove scar tissue and repair cartilage .

The microfracture surgery involves holes being drilled into bone in the knee to promote blood flow and form scar tissue, which replaces any damaged cartilage. Typically, patients need four months of rehab following the procedure.

In a statement following Winslow's most recent surgery, the Browns didn't mention the microfracture procedure, indicating only that the 23-year-old had surgery to "remove scar tissue and repair some cartilage damage."

INDIANAPOLIS - Kellen Winslow's comeback from offseason knee surgery will be quite a bit more involved than first impressions indicated.

Winslow, a Browns tight end, had microfracture surgery on his right knee Jan. 30, a process that takes four months to rehab.

The surgery is delicate, and although results have improved, it has not always been successful.

Microfracture surgery replaces damaged or lost cartilage. Small holes are drilled in the knee bone to promote blood flow. Scar tissue forms, replacing the damaged cartilage.

Tight end Kellen Winslow is still on crutches after surgery to repair cartilage damage in his knee. "We're expecting him to be back and ready to go sometime in June or July," Savage said.

(mercurynews.com)

No one will ever know how much pain Kellen Winslow Jr. endured as he played through the 2006 season, but in the end his sore knee definitely affected the way he played and his ability to jump.

"I was playing on one leg," he said in late December.

Next season should be better. On Tuesday, Dr. Anthony Miniaci performed arthroscopic surgery on Winslow's right knee to clean out scar tissue from previous surgeries and repair cartilage. The operation was performed at the Cleveland Clinic.

The operation was a success, the Browns reported, adding Winslow has been discharged from the hospital and is expected to make a complete recovery. While discussing the pending surgery, Winslow in December said he would do his rehab in Miami.

CLEVELAND Browns tight end Kellen Winslow underwent arthroscopic surgery today to remove scar tissue and repair cartilage damage in his right knee.

Winslow was released from the Cleveland Clinic and is expected to make a full recovery. Team physician Anthony Miniaci performed the surgery.

Winslow injured the knee in motorcycle accident in May 2005.

He started all 16 games for Browns last season, often playing in pain and limited in his blocking ability because of the knee.

Winslow tied the team's single-season receptions record with 89.

(wane.com)

NOT SO FAST: Tight end Kellen Winslow, who played with persistent pain in his right knee, indicated during the season that he might have a minor surgical procedure performed to clean out scar tissue. Savage said that Winslow’s knee is responding well to the rest he’s had since the end of the season and might decide against surgery.

(tribune-chronicle.com)

Houston- Tight end Kellen Winslow Jr. tied Hall of Famer Ozzie Newsome's team record of 89 catches in a season - and did it on a gimpy knee that will require more surgery in the off-season.

"[Newsome] was a great player, so it's a great honor for me to be compared to him," Winslow said. "But I'm just happy to get through a season as healthy as possible and I'm looking forward to next year."

Winslow tied Newsome's record by catching 11 passes for 93 yards against the Texans, including a long of 22. He finished the season with 875 yards and three touchdowns.

Kellen Winslow Jr. told Houston writers on a conference call that he's toned himself down since the start of the season.

"I think I've done a pretty good job about not speaking out, speaking out of anger or frustration as I was in the beginning of the season," he said. "I've learned that anything you say can be twisted around, so you have to watch what you say even if you're just joking around or you don't mean it.

"My teammates know what type of person I am. They know me, they trust me and I get along with everybody on the team."

BEREA — Kellen Winslow is waiting to exhale.

One more game, and he can rest his surgically repaired knee. One more game, and he can call his comeback a success.

“I’m looking to get through one season healthy and I’m one game away,” he said Wednesday. “It’s really like my rookie year. I want to get into the offseason and get as healthy as possible.”

Winslow (6-foot-4, 248 pounds) has started all 15 games in his first action since breaking his leg in Week 2 of his rookie year in 2004. He missed the 2005 season after tearing up his knee in a motorcycle accident.

Browns tight end Kellen Winslow Jr. explained the animated exchange with coach Romeo Crennel that was caught on camera.

Though it appeared Crennel was chastising Winslow after a second pass intended for him was intercepted, Winslow said Crennel was pumping him back up.

"It's very inaccurate [that we fought]," said Winslow. "Coach Crennel has my back, and I have his. He was just trying to encourage me. He was saying he's going to need me and just make some plays like you always do.' That's all that was. It wasn't an argument or anything."

BEREA — Before the season started, Kellen Winslow said that at 90 percent of full strength he’s better than any tight end in the NFL. Fourteen games into the season, Winslow remains confident in his ability, but he now knows he’s not at the top of the list. Winslow was selected as the second alternate on the AFC’s Pro Bowl roster. Kansas City’s Tony Gonzalez and San Diego’s Antonio Gates were selected to the team. Baltimore’s Todd Heap is the first alternate. “Antonio and Tony are well-deserving guys,” Winslow said. “They deserve my respect. I’ll just wait my turn. We’re just focusing on getting a win around here. We have to get a win, and individual stuff will come with it.”

It's been a big year for Kellen Winslow. The tight end has managed 76 receptions -- the most by a Browns tight end since Ozzie Newsome matched the team receptions record of 89 in 1984.

In doing so, he has become just the third player in team history to mark a 70-catch season. Meanwhile, his 755 yards are the most by a Browns tight end since Newsome's 1,001 in 1984.

Not bad for a player who, prior to September,

Browns tight end Kellen Winslow Jr. was fined $5,000 by the NFL on Friday for his unnecessary roughness penalty against Pittsburgh linebacker James Farrior on Dec. 7.

The fine comes one day after Steelers linebacker Joey Porter was fined $10,000 for calling Winslow a name used as a slur against gay men - remarks that were prompted by Winslow's hit on Farrior.

According to the NFL, Winslow was fined because "specifically, on a pass play, he unnecessarily struck his opponent late."

Linebacker Joey Porter apologized yesterday to anyone he might have offended over some crude remarks he made Thursday, except for the target of his comments -- Cleveland Browns tight end Kellen Winslow.

"I would just like to say it was a poor choice of words in the comment I made toward Winslow," Porter said. "If I offended anybody, I apologize for that."

Porter twice called Winslow a name considered derogatory when used to describe gay men.

"I guess how we used that word freely, me growing up using it, I didn't think nothing of it like that," Porter said. "Like I said, I apologize to anybody I offended on it.

"I didn't mean to offend nobody but Kellen Winslow. Pretty much, that's it about that."

Browns tight end Kellen Winslow Jr. called it a "classless act" for Steelers linebacker Joey Porter to call him a derogatory term for a homosexual.

Porter used the term against Winslow twice in reference to his late hit on James Farrior in the fourth quarter of the Steelers' 27-7 victory over the Browns.

"All I can say is he's entitled to his opinion, and he's a great player, and I have great respect for Joey Porter," said Winslow. "If he wants to be a tough guy or whatever, that's fine. But that's a classless act. I see what type of guy he is now and just lost a little respect for him."

Steelers outside linebacker Joey Porter should expect to hear from the NFL after he referred to Browns tight end Kellen Winslow as a slur that is associated with a person's sexual orientation Thursday night.

The Steelers beat the Browns 27-7 at Heinz Field and afterward Porter was still fuming about a play in which Winslow got called for a personal foul for a late hit on Steelers linebacker James Farrior.

It happened in the fourth quarter.

"It was late, that's what (slur) do," Porter said. "He's soft. He wants to be tough but he's really soft."

PITTSBURGH - Steelers linebacker Joey Porter ridiculed the Browns following Pittsburgh’s win Thursday night, calling tight end Kellen Winslow a derogatory name and saying the team is too soft to be a true rival to the Super Bowl champions.

With Willie Parker running for a franchise-record 223 yards, the Steelers outrushed the Browns 303-18 during a 27-7 victory Thursday night that was nearly as one-sided as Pittsburgh’s 41-0 decision in Cleveland last December. The Steelers have won six in a row and 13 of 14 from their AFC North rivals.

“They kicked our rear ends,” Browns receiver Joe Jurevicius said.

BEREA, Ohio - The first time the Browns and Pittsburgh Steelers played this season, Joey Porter and Kellen Winslow spent part of pregame yapping at each other.

Wednesday, they were members of the Mutual Admiration Society.

"You recognize a ballplayer when you see a ballplayer," Porter said on a conference call with the local media. "He's a good ballplayer. We talked before the game to get ourselves going. You still respect his game afterward.

"There's no bitterness."

"Ditto," Winslow said. "I love Porter. I love going against guys like that. He's a great player and that makes the game fun."

The question has been asked many times this season: just who is the best tight end in the AFC this season? Obviously, we'd like to believe that Kellen Winslow has the most potential, but the Browns have not been able to get him the football at the most opportune times in the red zone. Only two tight ends are typically voted into the Pro Bowl, and being in contention come December usually has a lot to do with making it and not making it. Let's take a look at the "elite" tight ends in the AFC, and the possible reasons for why they deserve to go to the Pro Bowl or why they do not deserve to go. I'd like to note that what certain players like Tony Gonzalez and Todd Heap do in the next few weeks could change my decision on them, because clutch games while trying to clinch a playoff spot are huge.

Tony Gonzalez used to let himself get worked up when he was called out by yet another young tight end aspiring to be him.

When Cleveland’s Kellen Winslow Jr. recently claimed for himself the title as the best in the business, Gonzalez was more amused than anything else.

But Gonzalez took notice. This week, with the Chiefs preparing for Sunday’s game against Winslow’s Browns in Cleveland, he couldn’t let it pass without comment.

“I respect him as a player,” Gonzalez said. “It’s just funny the way some guys conduct themselves, fall into the trap of trying to get exposure. Really, what counts is what you do on the field. You really don’t have to say too much or you shouldn’t have to say too much.

BEREA A month has passed since Kellen Winslow Jr. headed for Antonio Gates country boasting that, as tight ends go, he’s the greatest show on earth.

“I just did it for fun,” Winslow says now, “for laughs and giggles.”

It’s December. Losing has mellowed the tone coming from Winslow’s locker stall.

“The season wears on you,” he said Thursday. “I haven’t hit the wall or anything, but my body’s tired. My knee’s sore.”

In the spring of 2004, the NFL was ready to label Kellen Winslow its next big star. One year, two games, and two major injuries later, the pendulum had swung so far in the other direction that Winslow was about to be labeled the league's next big bust. Now, in the third year of his career, Winslow is finally getting the chance to show what kind of player he is: the best tight end in the NFL.

The Cleveland Browns had big plans for Winslow when they traded first- and second-round picks to select him with the sixth pick of the 2004 draft. The league had big plans for him, too. Before he ever stepped on the field, Winslow was already appearing in NFL commercials, and his jersey was one of the most profitable items in the NFL's lucrative merchandising department. Winslow seemed preordained to follow his father, also a tight end named Kellen, to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

BEREA, Ohio (AP) - Jim Brown slowly worked his way around Cleveland's locker room in Atlanta last Sunday, shaking hands and congratulating players on a rare road win for the Browns.

``Good game,'' the Hall of Fame running back told the son of a fellow Hall of Famer.

Brown also marveled at a fourth-quarter catch by Kellen Winslow, who took both the reception and praise in stride.

Given the choice between memora ble Kellen Winslow Jr. video highlights and Winslow audio, a fair segment of the Browns congregation would keep eyes wide open and ears covered.

This Sunday was for them - a deliverance with no sermon.

The Browns took a ride up in the standings without Winslow elevating himself to the Pro Bowl or Canton or a bronzing on the lakefront some day. Five catches for 90 yards and a silent soundtrack. All in all, a good day.

CLEVELAND - Kellen Winslow leads the league in receptions by a tight end and ranks third among all receivers.

He has played every game for the Browns and has fought through constant pain in his knee.

He has talked big and backed it up.

One would think Winslow has answered pretty much any question that lingered about his ability to play coming off nearly two missed seasons.

San Diego -- In the heavyweight bout between San Diego native Kellen Winslow Jr. and Chargers star Antonio Gates -- as Winslow dubbed the meeting midweek -- Winslow won in a knockout.

The Browns tight end caught a career-high 11 passes for 78 yards, compared to two passes for 22 yards for Gates. The 11 catches were tied for second most in a game in Browns history.

"He did what he said he was going to do," said Browns quarterback Charlie Frye. "He came home and had a great game."

(Sports Network) - Kellen Winslow Sr. was among the most revered players in San Diego Chargers history, not to mention one of the greatest tight ends the NFL has ever seen. His son appears to be quickly approaching that same legendary status.

Playing for the first time on the field where his father established his Hall of Fame credentials, Kellen Winslow II was the shining star for the Cleveland Browns in Sunday's 32-25 loss to the Chargers at Qualcomm Stadium. The brash 23-year-old hauled in a career-high 11 Charlie Frye passes for 78 yards, backing up the considerable amount of self-promoting he did in the days leading up to his homecoming.

SAN DIEGO — Kellen Winslow walked out of the visitor’s training room at Qualcomm Stadium Sunday with both knees wrapped and told reporters that he needed to sit down to answer questions.

‘‘I’m messed up,’’ the Cleveland Browns tight end said. ‘‘It was a very physical game, and they (the Chargers) are a tough team. I’m aching and bruised up. That’s football, though.’’

Winslow was public enemy number one among Chargers’ fans because of comments he made last week. Winslow, whose father Kellen Sr. was a Hall of Fame tight end for the Chargers, said that he’s the best tight end in the NFL. The comment was considered to be a show of disrespect for San Diego Pro Bowl tight end Antonio Gates, who played at Kent State University.

SAN DIEGO - Chargers star tight end Antonio Gates doesn’t care much for Kellen Winslow’s boasting, which could make Sunday’s home game with the Cleveland Browns much more interesting.

On Wednesday, Winslow hyped his matchup with Gates as “a heavyweight match. It’s me versus Gates. I want to be the best tight end out there.”

Winslow, whose 40 catches lead all tight ends, mentioned that Kansas City’s Tony Gonzalez is behind him on the receptions list, followed by Gates.

BEREA — It’s inconceivable to think that anyone named Kellen Winslow could be booed Sunday at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego.

Then again, the Winslow in question is Kellen Jr., the son of Hall of Fame tight end Kellen Sr. The elder Winslow, who played nine years for the Chargers, would never be the target of boos. The same can’t be said for his son, a tight end for the Browns who hopes to eventually join his father in the Hall of Fame.

Kellen Jr. laid the groundwork for rough treatment by Chargers fans when he reaffirmed his belief he’s the best tight end in the NFL. He might get an argument from Chargers tight end Antonio Gates, who’s played in two Pro Bowls in his short three-year career.

EREA, Ohio - Fans have heard all the talk that NFL games are never about one player facing another player.

Kellen Winslow seems to disagree. At least he does this week, as the Browns travel to San Diego to play the Chargers.

"I look at it like it's a heavyweight match," Winslow said Wednesday. "It's me vs. Gates."

"Gates" would be Antonio Gates, a former Kent State basketball star who took the NFL world into his palm by trying out for and making the Chargers as an undrafted tight end.

Tight end Kellen Winslow Jr., who said earlier in the season that the coaches were holding back the offense, was thrilled with the rebirth under new coordinator Jeff Davidson.

"He did awesome," Winslow said. "Just the whole setup, the play-calling, was awesome, totally different."

Winslow said players were excited to make plays for Davidson and for each other.

CLEVELAND - Giving new offensive coordinator Jeff Davidson all the credit for the Browns' 20-13 victory over the New York Jets on Sunday might be going too far.

But quarterback Charlie Frye and tight end Kellen Winslow knew how much Davidson cared about them. They could see it in his bloodshot eyes.

``He put in a lot of work this week,'' Frye said of the former offensive line coach who was promoted Monday night.

Finally, Junior is making a name for himself.

Until this season, Kellen Winslow Jr. was known for being the namesake of a Hall of Fame NFL tight end and for squandering his own promising career because of recklessness off the field that resulted in a serious motorcycle accident.

"Now you see what all the expectations were about," Jets linebacker Victor Hobson said of the versatile and talented Browns tight end he'll have to deal with Sunday in Cleveland. "There's no way around that. I'm an outside linebacker and my job is the tight end. They move him around a lot, in regular tight-end setups and in the flex as a wide receiver. He can make it miserable for everybody."

HEMPSTEAD, N.Y. -- Browns tight end Kellen Winslow, drafted sixth overall in 2004, broke his leg in Week 2 of his rookie season. Then he sat out all of last season after suffering a career-threatening knee injury, among other injuries, in a motorcycle accident in the spring of 2005.

Undeterred, Winslow, 6-4 and 248 pounds, is back on the football field and living up to his promise. He has 33 receptions (tops among NFL tight ends) for 317 yards and two touchdowns this season, heading into Sunday's game against the Jets.

BEREA, Ohio - Kellen Winslow leads all NFL tight ends with 30 catches and is on pace for 96 receptions.

Does Winslow now believe he is being utilized properly in the Browns' offense?

"Sometimes," he said Thursday.

He continued.

"But I got to do what the coaches say," Winslow said. "That's what is in the game plan, and move on."

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Justin Winslow, the half-brother of Browns tight end Kellen Winslow Jr., will be laid to rest Tuesday in Kansas City, Mo.

Winslow, 23, died last Thursday at the Research Medical Center.

The Kansas City Star reported services began at 10 a.m. at the Watkins Brothers Memorial Chapel, located at 4000 Emanuel Cleaver II Blvd.

Interment will be at the Forest Hills Cemetery.

The family is requesting donations be made to the YMCA of Greater Kansas City in lieu of flowers, the Star reported.

(newsnet5.com)

CLEVELAND - After two weeks of getting raked over the coals by fans, it didn’t take long — the Browns’ offense got booed on Sunday’s first series.

A quick pass to Dennis Northcutt gained nothing. Jason Wright ran up the middle for zip. Trevor Pryce sacked Charlie Frye for a 10-yard loss.

On first down on their next series, Bart Scott and Adalius Thomas suffocated Frye for a big loss. Scott blitzed again on second down, arriving at Wright at the same time as a handoff. Wright somehow got back to he line of scrimmage. A third-and-19 screen pass was good for 2 yards and more boos.

Tight end Kellen Winslow Jr. said Monday his taunting penalty against the Ravens was unwarranted.

He said he's an easy target for the officials.

Winslow was flagged 12 yards for taunting linebacker Bart Scott after an 11-yard catch in the first quarter. The Browns later punted.

BEREA, Ohio — In pro football, it's almost a sacred thing. From Unitas-to-Berry to Montana-to-Rice to Manning-to-Harrison, the communion between quarterback and receiver is a special bond: two men knowing each other's nuances, preferences, how they will react under pressure.

Many times it comes from hours of practice in the cold and the mud. And sometimes it originates in the silliest of places. If Charlie Frye-to- Kellen Winslow II becomes the NFL's next big hookup, it will have begun at Dave & Buster's.

"In February," Frye laughs, "there ain't much to do in Cleveland."

I can guess that the Browns’ coaches were not pleased with tight end Kellen Winslow, who expressed the opinion that they’re pretty stupid because they’re not trying to get the ball in his hands, especially on third down.

Among the populace, no one rushed to defend the coaches. In fact, Winslow is likely to receive a standing ovation Sunday at the Stadium. This nonsense has been going on too long. Thank God somebody in that locker room finally said what they really feel.

The Browns have waited two years for Winslow to produce. He lost his rookie year when he broke his leg in the second game. Last year was lost due to the infamous motorcycle accident.

BEREA, Ohio - Romeo Crennel would love to have Kellen Winslow declared more off limits to the media than Area 51, the top-secret U.S Air Force base in the Nevada desert.

The Browns coach knows his talented and impetuous tight end has a lot of good ideas. He just doesn't think Winslow's penchant for going nuclear on certain targets is fit for public consumption.

Crennel is no doubt displeased with Winslow's decision Monday to air grievances over his playing time and the coaching staff's lack of imagination.

Sometimes the truth hurts.

Beyond the accuracy of Winslow's candid critique - "some of the coaches might just be holding us back a little bit" - there is a larger issue being addressed here.

CINCINNATI - Former Browns coach Butch Davis once referred to one of the many injuries his Browns incurred as the ``injury du jour of the week.''

When a team loses it is second-guessed, and the second-guess du jour of this week was the way Kellen Winslow was used in the 34-17 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals.

On several third downs, Winslow was on the sidelines while Joshua Cribbs lined up as the team's third receiver.

``Generally in two backs and three wides you take the tight end out,'' coach Romeo Crennel said. ``It's not an extensive package that we have in that. There's a couple plays that we like to run, so if that comes up in a game that's who we put in.''

On at least three occasions Sunday, Winslow was off the field on the key down on offense.

``I do what the coaches say,'' Winslow said. ``That's all I can do. I want to be there on third down. I just... go with the game plan.

BEREA, Ohio - There are three double-digit underdogs in the NFL this weekend.

One of them plays in Cleveland.

It's come to this for the Browns, the team that suddenly can't get things right.

Ten-point underdogs to the Bengals for Cincinnati's home opener in Paul Brown Stadium.

Inept 19-14 losers in the season opener to the New Orleans Saints, a 3-13 team a year ago.

A combined regular-season record of 36-77 since the team returned in 1999. Since 2003, a record of 15-34.

Kellen Winslow pointed out this week that the Bengals used to be "a joke." Who's the joke on now?

CLEVELAND - The blocking was bad. The play calling was worse. The running game, save for Charlie Frye's mad dashes of self-preservation, was nonexistent.

For awhile Sunday it appeared Randy Lerner's English soccer club would outscore his American football team. Aston Villa managed one goal. The Browns were pointless until the third quarter.

It was that kind of ugly for the Browns in a 19-14 season-opening loss to the New Orleans Saints.

Fans had plenty of reasons to feel lousy and perhaps only one to be encouraged. The franchise might finally have the dynamic playmaker it has lacked since returning to Cleveland.

CLEVELAND - The blocking was bad. The play calling was worse. The running game, save for Charlie Frye's mad dashes of self preservation, was non-existent.

For awhile Sunday it appeared Randy Lerner's English soccer club would outscore his American football team. Aston Villa managed one goal. The Browns were pointless until the third quarter.

It was that kind of ugly for the Browns in a 19-14 season-opening loss to the New Orleans Saints.

Fans had plenty of reasons to feel lousy and perhaps only one to be encouraged. The franchise might finally have the dynamic playmaker it has lacked since returning to Cleveland.

Kellen Winslow was a beast. Appearing in his first regular season game in nearly two years, the Browns' tight end played with a level of intensity and fearlessness seldom witnessed at Cleveland Browns Stadium.

CLEVELAND — Browns tight end Kellen Winslow knew exactly what he wanted to do after he caught an 18-yard touchdown pass from Charlie Frye in the third quarter.
Winslow sprinted back to the Browns’ bench area and put a bear hug on trainer Marty Lauzon. Lauzon spent many hours helping Winslow rehabilitate from the devastating knee injury he suffered in a motorcycle accident May 1, 2005.
“I was just thanking him for all we’ve been through,” Winslow said. “These past two years have been hard for me. He was there every step of the way. To get back into the end zone, I wanted to give him a big hug and say, ‘Thank you.’ ”
The touchdown was the first by Winslow in a Browns’ uniform. The first-round pick in 2004 missed all but two games of his rookie season with an ankle injury. He suffered internal injuries and severe damage to his right knee in the motorcycle accident.
Winslow looked as good as new in the Browns’ 19-14 loss to the New Orleans Saints. He caught a team-leading eight passes for 63 yards. He nearly made a one-handed grab of a Frye pass in the end zone in the fourth quarter. Saints safety Roman Harper was penalized for interference on the play, setting up a 1-yard touchdown run by Frye.

BEREA, Ohio — Browns fans have waited for more than a year to see Braylon Edwards and Kellen Winslow Jr. on the field at the same time in a regular-season game.

The wait will be over Sunday when Edwards and Winslow take the field against the New Orleans Saints.

Injuries have short-circuited the careers of Winslow and Edwards so far.

Winslow has missed the past two seasons because of a broken leg in 2004 and a motorcycle accident last year in which several knee ligaments were torn.

BEREA - K-2 keeps saying his return from a 30-game abyss will be A-OK.

Coming off Thursday’s preseason finale, tight end Kellen Winslow Jr. suggested fans can quit worrying about QB-1, Charlie Frye.

“People underestimate Charlie,” Winslow said after Frye ran two mini-series in his final preseason tuneup. “He’s gonna be fine. I mean ... he’s gonna be a star in this league.”

Kellen Winslow Jr., TE, Browns: Vernon Davis is the recently hyped version today of what Winslow was projected to be a couple of years back. While Winslow does not have as much game experience as you would like from a shooting star, he does have a few things going for him.