Teams Backed Away From Pursuing TE Kellen Winslow Because Of Ability Concerns

Adam Caplan of theSidelineView.com reports that the an NFL personnel source told him that his chose not to pursuing a trade for TE Kellen Winslow after they watched in game tape from 2011.

“We just didn’t think he could be more than a rotational player at this point (in his career) after examining his tape and performance,” said the source.

There’s no question that Winslow comes with plenty of concerns, but the entire Buccaneers offense was largely underwhelming last season, so there’s still a chance that he has something left in the tank. Seattle only gave up a seventh-round pick in return for him, so it’s not as they overpaid for him. Winslow will likely compete with Zach Miller for playing time, but a rotation is certainly not out of the question by any means.

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Late last night, the Seattle Seahawks finalized a trade with the Buccaneers for TE Kellen Winslow. Tampa Bay will receive a conditional seventh-round pick in 2013  for the veteran tight end.

Depending on Winslow’s production next season, the Seattle could end up sending them their sixth-round pick.

It’s interesting that someone stepped up and traded for him, considering that the Buccaneers were ready to move on, but then again, Seattle is willing to take some chances in regards to acquiring new talent.

Winslow, 28, will now compete with Zach Miller, who was signed last season, for the team’s starting tight end position. It’s really hard to guesstimate who’ll end up as the starter, but Winslow will at least have a shot to come away with the job.

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Seattle Seahawks owner Paul Allen announced that they’ve traded a undisclosed draft pick to the Buccaneers for TE Kellen Winslow.

Pro Football Talk reports that the Seahawks did not require Winslow to renegotiate his current contract, so they’ll take on his $3.3 million base salary for the 2012.

The fact that John Carlson left during free agency left a hole on their roster, but it’s hard to say that Winslow is going to be a hugely effective weapon for them next season. Still, he has a good shot of securing the starting job in the coming months.

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Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune reports that Kellen Winslow could be an option for the Bears, now that the Buccaneers have informed him that they have no plans to retain him for the upcoming season.

Chicago was rumored to have interest in Winslow months ago, but the fact they recently drafted Evan Rodriguez in the fourth-round of this year’s draft, suggests that they may not being willing to part with much of any value in return for the veteran tight end. Tampa Bay will most likely release Winslow if they’re unable to find a trade partner, at which point the Bears could look to sign him, assuming they’re interested in adding more depth to the position.

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Kellen Winslow joined Sirius XM Radio and mentioned that the Buccaneers and new head coach Greg Schiano has informed him that he’s “not wanted” in Tampa Bay, and that the team will help by facilitating a trade, per Andrew Bogusch.

There’s been speculation for a few months now that Winslow’s time in Tampa could be coming to an end. Winslow recent recently made the decision to work out on his own during the offseason, rather than with the team, even though he was under the assumption that it was ok with the team.

The Buc’s have already paid him all of the guaranteed cash that was included in his contract, so even if they’re unable to find a trade partner, Winslow would most likely be released.

Winslow can be effective in the passing game, but he’s certainly not the game-changing talent that he was expected to be. It’s hard to say who would be interested at this point, but I’m sure we’ll hear more about this topic in the coming days.