The Browns stuck with their 2004 Number One draft pick Kellen Winslow Jr. after losing his entire rookie year to a broken leg on the football field, after suffering injuries from flipping over a motorcycle, and even after confronting former General Manager Phil Savage last season for disguising Winslow’s staph infection as an “undisclosed illnessâ€.
However, the Winslow era has ended today with the announcement of the high-profile player’s trade to Tampa Bay for undisclosed draft picks. I will miss Winslow’s intensity, his passion for the game, his toughness to play through injuries, and his ability to catch passes amidst defenders ready to lay him out. I will also miss his leadership qualities, his calm in the midst of storms, and his tears of joy while describing sweet wins in Cleveland. Number 80, a fan favorite, will be missed.
However, Winslow is probably more than satisfied with the trade. He will not only get to practice and play in the warm climates of Florida, but he won’t have to suffer through the aches and pains of being tackled on the frozen tundra of Cleveland Browns Stadium, or fight off frost bite from the whipping winds coming off of Lake Erie.
In one way, it is not surprising Browns Head Coach Eric Mangini pulled the trigger on the trade. After the Shaun Rogers fiasco, Mangini is probably ridding the team of another outspoken leader. Winslow has proven his fearlessness in taking on a general manager – much less a new head coach. Mangini knows that with Winslow gone, there is one less malcontent in the locker room. The Winslow trade takes Mangini closer to controlling the team, to making the Browns march in lockstep with him. General Manager George Kokinis said in a prepared statement, “…the draft picks we 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.â€
Before the trade, the Browns were without picks in the third, fifth and seventh rounds, reported Tony Gross of The Plain Dealer. Winslow and the Browns had numerous differences in their five seasons together. In only his second game as a pro, Winslow broke his leg and dislocated an ankle while trying to recover an onside kick. He missed the remainder of his rookie season. The following May, Winslow was practicing tricks on a high-powered motorcycle and suffered severe injuries to his right knee. Later, a staph infection set in after one surgery and resulted in complications that plague him to this day.
Winslow has had a surgical procedure on the knee every year since. Last season, Winslow sparred with Savage over issues related to an “undisclosed illness†that caused Winslow to be hospitalized. Winslow later said he was hospitalized for another staph infection and blasted the club for trying to keep it secret. The Browns initially suspended Winslow for one game, but then rescinded the suspension after lawyers got involved and Winslow’s PR representative disclosed emails from a club employee, reminding Winslow not to talk to the press. Savage was fired after the season. The club employee left recently after receiving a 30-day notice of a layoff.
And now Winslow is gone.
Who will be next?
