The Cleveland Plain Dealer’s Mary Kay Cabot had the distinct pleasure of being Kellen Winslow Jr.’s shoulder to blame his coaches on.
“Some of the coaches might just be holding us back a little bit,” Winslow said. “I don’t mean to try to go behind their backs or whatever, but let’s go, let’s air it out, let’s run the ball, let’s make plays, let’s be exciting.”
He said the offensive coaches are failing to get the ball in the hands of the playmakers.
“I think we’re being a little too conservative right now and we just need to unleash it,” he said. “Why wait? We’re 0-2. We’ve got nothing to lose.”
He said he’s tried talking to the coaching staff, to no avail.
“There’s so much talking — it doesn’t even matter anymore sometimes,” he said. “It’s just up to them.”
Winslow was especially frustrated during the 34-17 loss to the Bengals because he was removed from the field on several key third downs. After one of those, late in the third quarter, he stalked over to the sidelines and waved his hands in anger. The Browns converted only 2-of-10 third downs.
“It’s very frustrating,” Winslow said. “We’re losing and I’m not on the field. And I just don’t get it. I don’t really say anything; I just show my frustration.”
Winslow said he’s tried talking to his position coach, Ben Coates, and offensive coordinator Maurice Carthon, but nothing’s changed.
“The Giants run the same system as we do, the Cowboys run the same system as we do and [Jeremy] Shockey and [Jason] Witten are on the field on third down,” he said. “I just don’t understand why I’m not on the field sometimes.”
Considering Winslow’s history of exercising terrific judgement under pressure, I don’t understand, either.