In the week of non-stop Kellen Winslow coverage, we now have this blurb from NFL Network’s Adam Schefter:
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.
To me, this post says a few things. One, the team has no intentions of offering Winslow a new contract at year’s end and likely had no intentions to do so before this issue even happened. Which leads to two: instead of dealing with their issues, they appear to rather rid themselves of those that are speaking up about them.
Listening to a few of Winslow’s teammates being interviewed today, the players show no signs of being torn apart by Kellen’s words. They cite his work ethic and what he does on the field day in and day out. The only part of the team that appears to be upset about his recent words are those that do not see the field of play whatsoever.
Given that the Lions got a bevy of picks for Roy Williams, I would expect nothing less than that for someone of Winslow’s stature. Unfortunately, something tells me that the Browns would be more than willing to rid them selves of an opinionated player at less than value.
Winslow was quietly dangled before trade deadline [Adam Schefter]
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Author: Scott
Scott is a co-founder/editor of Waiting For Next Year who resides in Cleveland, Ohio. Feel free to follow him on Twitter or email him at scott@waitingfornextyear.com.Scott has written 1700 articles for Waiting for Next Year.
I’ll hate this team if we trade winslow away
If we trade him, we better get something good out of it. I’ve had enough of trading superstars away for crap in return. The only good to come from this is if we get solid players in return who fill holes for us.
Now let’s just all hope Rucker can become the new Winslow.
The Browns front office would screw up trading Winslow, regardless of the motivation. They have the worst track record in the league when it comes to scouting talent. Besides Winslow and Thomas, name another player drafted by the Browns that would start on any contending team in the league.
im actually not against trading winslow this offseason for a few reasons. i agree he plays hard and just wants to win. however, there is a fine line between being intense and wanting to win and being a total pain in the butt drama mama. it seems to me like winslow has crossed that fine line. i also wouldnt be surprised to see winslow start to have a bevy of nagging injuries within the next 2-3 years, especially knee issues, which could cause him to miss multiple games and/or play at less than his ability at a steady decline. they should maximize the return as soon as possible.
DC BUcks – youre going a little overboard there. edwards, drops and all, would start on any team in the nfl. Sean Jones could likely start for about any team as well. but your point is well taken. the browns certainly are lacking draft-produced impact players. dont forget about pointbreand!
“but it is easy enough to figure out why Cleveland would have considered dealing Winslow”
Well, seeing as how his comments came AFTER the trade deadline….no, it’s not freaking easy to figure out why Cleveland would even consider doing something so stupid. My list of people who must go is now up to 3…..RAC, DA, and Savage. We need to clean house and get rid of people who are not interested in winning.
So what’s Shapiro up to right now?
He could craft a much better deal while in a coma than Savage ever could.
If the Browns really do trade him, I want Savage to have nothing to do with it.
I have a friend in the office who is a Lions’ fan. He was mad as all hell when they traded Williams, until two of us pointed out that: 1) he was a FA at the end of the year, and was gone, and 2) Brett Favre was worth a 4th round pick. Roy Williams got them a 1, 2, and 6. That’s pretty good for someone who you weren’t going to keep, on a team with no wins.
Sorry, my point being: if they do trade him at some point, there could be worse things. If they get a ton of decent picks, I could live with it logically, even if it ticked me off to no end emotionally (and it would).
I think the Browns main issue is to clean up the facilities so people stop getting goddamn staph infections all the time.
@ RockKing: No, they’re committed to winning…didn’t you see the press release!?
Rock, the problem with clearing the whole front office is that who-ever comes in is going to push out 1/2 the players because they’re not “his guys”. So what, now we’re 2-3 years from contending (for the playoffs). AGAIN?
I’m not sure I can handle that.
Swig…we are 10 years from contending if we keep this front office
I still don’t have a big problem with the front office. I actually don’t know why a complete and utter lack of coaching should diminish the fact that the Browns did a lot to upgrade the team this year. Everyone was happy with Stallworth signing, and most people were happy to see Shaun Rogers come here for Leigh Bodden. Some questioned Corey Williams for sure, but everyone knew this team needed a new defensive line. Of course people will second guess signing Derek Anderson, but most opinions I read said that the Browns needed at least one more year with their two QB’s. DA has played horrendously, making it look obvious now, but that is just second guessing.
Just a quick word on all of this.
While all the other Brown’s players interviews I have seen on the TeeVee and heard on the radio show, they do support Kellen and speak highly of him, as mentioned above. BUT every single one of them also expressed that they were satisfied with the Brown’s response, both reactive and proactive, to the staph issue.
I have had staph and it is a super flukey thing. Anyone can get it at any time, anywhere. It really is every where. Sanitize everything and you can still get it.
The problems have been building from the bottom. 2-3 weeks ago Savage wasn’t the problem. The longer the status quo is maintained the more he becomes part of the problem too.
If Savage is smart at all he’s got to fire Crennel and at least buy himself some time. That wouldn’t be the WHOLE front office.
@Craig: The Browns could have had both QBs for at least one more year by offering DA the max tender. There was absolutely NO reason to give DA a new contract, but he did anyway. I like Savage as a talent evaluator, but when you let your ego get in the way of what’s best for the team, you’ve become part of the problem.
@deebo: “BUT every single one of them also expressed that they were satisfied with the Brown’s response, both reactive and proactive, to the staph issue.”……..of course they said that. They see now what happens if they dare say what’s really on their mind and what’s really going on.
I was really concerned about bringing in the chin because of the possibility of him wanting head coach and gm responsibilities because I thought Savage was the right man in that position. It’s obvious now that I was wrong, and I think now that Cowher is the man to steer this ship away from the iceberg that will send us back to inferiority.
Once he’s gone. Next year Browns will miss him when he puts up record numbers for another team. In the front office heads right now all they’re thinking is that he’s a big mouth, and that we won without him when we played the Giants. So get rid of him.
I hate it personally, but Heiden and Dinkins will hold it down when he’s gone next year.
Cower at coach + gm is NOT the solution. Very very few people can coach and evaluate talent. 3 years after he came people would start bitching about how we don’t have any players, call for a GM who would then fire Cower because he’s not “the GMs coach” (ala San Diego, bang up job there AJ).
This isnt too big of a suprise. Tight End is where we had the most depth this offseason and Heiden proved that he is a decent starter against the Giants. What if we could have upgraded our linebackers for K2? Rucker isnt quite Kellen’s caliber but he brings a similar skill set. Plus it would seem that Mr. Winslow already has plans to leave.
The browns don’t deserve winslow. How is he being a drama mama? You can die from that infection and lose a limb easily. The browns made it seem like he didn’t wanna say what was wrong and it was them all along. Ya’ll heard the rumors bout him having a std and stuff. I would have spoke out too. Trade him to the bills please