I have to say, Kellen Winslow has won me over and it's official: he's not a bad guy in my book. It's cool reading the camp stories about his comeback, how he's pumped for the season. And especially how he's apparently grown up these past 2-3 years. But looking back the thing that really strikes me is how quietly he went to work recovering from his injuries of last offseason. I think all he ever issued was a brief written apology, one that seemed unsatisfying to fans (this one included). But it's his committment that was really being tested and no press conference would measure that, no amount of stories in the ABJ and PD would prove that he had what it took mentally to be an NFL player. Is he a "good guy" yet? No, but I'm neutral, and hopeful. And I'm finding it hard not to root for the guy.
There are really only two things we really "heard" about Winslow during the past year or so. One, was that he re-did his deal with the Browns. By all accounts this was far less contentious than expected. It could have been really, really ugly. It could have created hard feelings. But it looks like Winslow and/or the Postons knew they had to give and they did, and the Browns took less than was fair. I'd say the Browns are now more invested in Winslow's success than they were in 2004. So far it looks like Winslow is doing all he can do to live up to his end of the bargain. The second thing was that Winslow has been getting along with teammates, especially he and Charlie Frye. This says a lot of good things about both guys. For while after the motorcycle accident it seemed like Winslow was a loner and was on the verge of maybe crawling into a shell. Thankfully, he's done the opposite, and I'd like to think that increases his chances for success. It's also cool to see Winslow and Edwards trading some enthusiastic comments in the paper. Overall Winslow comes off a little less prickly. Though if you see him in camp he's obviously taking a very competitive approach to camp.
I read that Jim Rome slammed Winslow for saying he thought his "90%" would be better than most guys 100%. Whatever. It says bad things about Jim Rome, not Winslow. And if you heard or read Winslows entire comments it's pretty clear he was going out of his way not to talk himself up.
I'm still temptering my expectations, but Winslow is one of the biggest things to look forward to in 2006. With Bentley out maybe we won't have that awesome middle of the o-line that transforms the Browns into the true power-running bad-asses that they ought to be. But we still stand to have a promising and exciting offense with a legit running back, tight end, 2-3 very capable and dangerous WRs and a QB who's still an unknown, but very capable of exciting things. Winslow is a big, big part of that and so far so good.
In case you hadn't been paying much attention to the NFL's search for a new commish, they've released a list of 5 candidates and one of them is Cleveland lawyer Fred Nance. While Roger Goodell is the clear favorite for the job, the naming of Nance is, maybe, a compliment. Nance played a big role in negotiating with the league to get a team back after 1995. Being a finalist is, in some ways, an acknowledgement by the league that the Cleveland situation was a difficult one. Perhaps the league continues to feel a bit of guilt that things went down the way it did. And were the job to go to him I think it'd be a nice boost for Cleveland.
I hope this isn't an executive-level version of the NFL's "interview a black candidate" policy when it comes to NFL head coaching positions. I guess we'll never know.
TMQ is back. Easterbrook gets off to a bad start, however by perpetuatiing the myth that "(David) Carr has played reasonably well, without complaint, for awful teams." Er, no Gregg, he's played as awful as the teams he's been on. Seriously -- even Tim Couch led his share of exciting 4th quarter finishes. There's been nothing like that for Mr. Carr. But anyway, Easterbook's transgression occurs while making the larger, more valid point that Matt Lienert should not have fallen to #10 in the draft. And with that I wholeheartedly agree. I mean, what were those teams in the bottom-half of the top 10 thinking? And man, were he still there when the Browns selected I would have thought long and hard about Charlie Frye... and the decision would have been obvious -- you draft Lienert.
Camp Day 7 -- the heat is crazy right now, and I'm actually encouraged to hear that Crennel ran practice long and had gassers afterward. This is the point of the camp where you want the heat, you want it to be hard, and you want it to be a little unpleasant. Next week, getting ready for preseason games you want to let up. And after going for a mid-day 8 mile run the other day I can personally attest that it is insane to go hard in this weather.
I'm only going off what I read, but some random camp observations...
- Dorsey sounds horrible. Let's freaking get it over with and sign Testeverde already.
- Conversely, it still does sound like Anderson could be a good long-term guy to have around. He certainly seems guaranteed a roster spot, and the promise is still there that he'll become the main backup in another year or so. That would be great. And the present status is, to me, more reason to replace Dorsey with a veteran.
- With Cutch getting scoped it's clear that Bodden is a starting corner. If anything, this just saves everyone the trouble of pretending liek this was going to be a battle. It's pretty obvious that McCutcheon, never quite an ideal starter, has started to lose a little bit. He's nowhere near finished, but there's just no reason not put him in as the nickel back where he's more likely to play well.
- For now, the less I hear about the running backs the better.
- The same goes for the wide receivers too. We know who the main guys are, and for the backups slots it's really going to be up to the preseason games.
This article on Wimbley and DQ Jackson has added to my excitement for these guys and the defense overall. I'm hoping they are both excellent players, but merely being pretty good will make a big impact. The article states what most people already knew -- that Jackson is more likely to first crack the starting lineup. But Wimbley has, I think, a little less competition to overcome. With Chaun Thompson around I wouldn't be suprised if Jacksonw as the backup for the first few weeks of the season, but once he gets on the field he'll be hard to take off. Whatever the case, these guys will be a lot of fun to watch in the preseason.