Winslow wants to be back with Browns

[December 12, 2008]  BEREA, Ohio (AP) -- Despite a disappointing season and an ugly dispute with Cleveland's front office, Kellen Winslow wants to stay with the Browns.

Winslow will miss Monday night's game in Philadelphia with a badly sprained left ankle, and the oft-injured tight end isn't sure if he'll return to the field for Cleveland's last two games. Earlier this season, he was briefly suspended by the Browns for making disparaging remarks about the organization following his hospitalization with a staph infection.

"I love being a Cleveland Brown," he said Wednesday. "The guys here, we don't know who's going to be here next year. You just have to focus on this year. That's all you can do. ... I do want to be back here. I love being here. I love playing here. The fans have stuck by me."

Winslow said he has a "very good relationship" with Browns owner Randy Lerner, who will wait until after the season before deciding on the fates of coach Romeo Crennel and general manager Phil Savage.

Winslow missed two games with the staph infection and has just 43 catches after making 82 as a Pro Bowl selection last season.

"It's been a tough year all along through the stuff that's happened to me, it just hasn't gone my way," Winslow said. "I'm going to continue to fight and try to be a consistent player."

[Associated Press; By TOM WITHERS]

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