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)