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Winslow at odds on plays
By Patrick McManamon
Beacon Journal sportswriter
Mike Cardew/ Akron Beacon Journal
Cleveland Browns Kellen Winslow is tackled by Cincinnati Bengals Madieu Williams after a reception in the second quarter Sunday Sept.17, 2006 at Paul Brown Stadium in Cincinnati, Ohio. Cincinnati defeated Cleveland 34-17.
BEREA - Kellen Winslow has a theory about why the Browns' offense has struggled in two losses to open the season.
``I think some of the coaches might just be holding us back a little bit,'' Winslow said Monday at the end of the team's open locker room with the media.
Winslow, a tight end, spoke calmly and quietly, but his comments were pointed -- and might not sit well with offensive coordinator Maurice Carthon and coach Romeo Crennel.
``I don't mean to try to go behind their backs or whatever,'' Winslow said. ``But we're 0-and-2. We have nothing to lose. Let's go. Let's air it out. Let's run the ball. Let's make plays.
``Let's be exciting.''
Winslow said the Browns need to do a ``a better job of getting the ball in our playmakers' hands.''
``Basically that's it,'' he said. ``We got to execute, and when the ball comes, we got to make the play.''
Is it not in the game plan, he was asked?
``That's exactly what it is,'' Winslow said. ``I think we're being a little too conservative right now. We just need to unleash it. You know, why wait? It was a division game and we're 0-2, so we have nothing to lose.''
Winslow's comments came the same day that Crennel was talking about scaling back the team's approach, simplifying things to help the players better understand their roles.
He said some players are being asked to do too much.
``There are some guys who are playing several different positions, and when you ask them to do a lot of different things, those bricks on the pile, they begin to add up,'' Crennel said.
Crennel did not name names.
Winslow is one player who lines up in several spots.
There has been an unspoken concern that Winslow has made mental mistakes -- lining up wrong, missing a block, running the wrong route -- that have hurt the team at times.
That being said, he also has been the offense's best player.
In the loss Sunday in Cincinnati, Winslow came off the field several times on third down as the Browns went to a three-receiver, two-back set. Winslow talked to Crennel on the sidelines when it happened in the third quarter.
``I talked to him during the game, and he said he'll take care of it,'' Winslow said. ``So I'm pretty sure it's going to be taken care of.''
Winslow also said he had talked to tight ends coach Ben Coates, apparently before the game.
``Nothing's changed,'' Winslow said. ``I don't understand it.''
Winslow did not mention Carthon, but said: ``There's so much talk. It doesn't even matter sometimes. It's just up to them (the coaches).''
``The Giants run the same system as we do. The Cowboys run the same system as we do. And (Jason) Witten and (Jeremy) Shockey are on the field on third down,'' he said of their use of tight ends. ``I just don't understand why I'm not on the field sometimes.''
Crennel was asked if Winslow could have been the third receiver instead of Joshua Cribbs.
``He's not a wide receiver, first of all,'' Crennel said, speaking before the media spoke with Winslow. ``So when we go three wides, he's not there. I think you need to look at those plays that were run when we had that personnel group in the game and see if his presence would have made a difference on the plays that were called or not... before we jump to conclusions about whether he should be on the field or not.''
Said Winslow: ``I'm a playmaker. When the ball comes my way, I catch the ball, plain and simple.''
Winslow spoke after finishing consecutive games for the first time in his three seasons with the Browns. His rookie year was cut short by a broken ankle; his second year by a knee injury suffered in a motorcycle accident.
After that accident, the Browns re-worked Winslow's contract, taking away some bonus money but allowing him to earn the money back with performance incentives.
Winslow clearly disagreed with the game plan against the Cincinnati Bengals. The Browns started the game running the ball, and when passes were called, they were quick routes or slants. The idea was to control the ball and slow down the Bengals' pass rush.
But Sunday, quarterback Charlie Frye said the team opened things up in the second half -- which led to a 75-yard completion to wide receiver Braylon Edwards.
Winslow did not touch the ball until midway into the second quarter, and when he did, he broke a tackle and ran for a first down.
``Team chemistry is there, man,'' Winslow said. ``We just got to get... the plays we had for the Cincinnati game were run-first oriented. And, you know, that's fine. But we were down 14-zip in the first quarter, I think it was (actually 14-3). We got to whip the plays out and let's go.''
He later added: ``We're losing and I'm not on the field. I just don't get it.''
Will it change?
``It has to. If we want to win,'' he said. ``Not just myself, but we need our playmakers on the field. I'm just a playmaker, man. I just want to make plays and win.''
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