Browns rookie Perrion Winfrey in trouble again
By Steven Storrie
Welcome to the basement.
This Sunday the Cleveland Browns play their home opener against the New York Jets, looking to go 2-0 for the first time since 1993 when an up-and-coming coach named Bill Belichick was in charge. However, there’s one Browns player that may not be taking the field at FirstEnergy Stadium this weekend.
Perrion Winfrey is in the doghouse again.
Coach Kevin Stefanski confirmed in his press conference Friday that Defensive Tackle Winfrey was not at practice that day. Though not confirmed by Stefanski, who simply stated he would not get into any more detail’, it appears to be a disciplinary issue. Defensive end Myles Garrett addressed the situation with the media.
"“I think we all have to step up and say something, but sometimes silence speaks louder than words,” Garrett said. “We’ve used our voice a couple of times and at the end of the day, he’s got to learn how to be a pro. Kevin took it into his own hands and he felt like that was the right thing to do and I’m behind my coach’s actions totally.”"
Winfrey, drafted in the fourth round of the NFL Draft this year out of Oklahoma, fired up Cleveland fans with his energetic introductory interview shortly after being drafted, waxing lyrical about coffee and barking repeatedly, spilling phrases such as ‘No Coffee Needed’, ‘Juiced Up’ and ‘All Bite, No Bark’ that seemed tailor-made to be put on t-shirts.
His passion and fire were infectious and energized the whole fan base, seemingly promising so much. However, the former Sooner was benched in favor of two undrafted free agents in Roderick Perry and Glenn Logan during the preseason, though no explanation was given at the time. Now Garret is shedding some light on things, further referencing Winfrey’s issues in his interview.
"“It was pretty common knowledge,” Garrett said via Scott Petrak of Browns Zone. “And it was easy to see. It wasn’t like we had to bring it to his attention. It was just, his actions were very apparent.”"
This past Sunday in the win over the Carolina Panthers, Winfrey only played five snaps. It looks as though he won’t even get that much this weekend. Nobody wants to jump to conclusions, but things don’t look good, with some rumors suggesting former Falcons tackle Nick Thurman recently worked out for the Browns.
It would be a tremendous disappointment if this proves to be the end of the line for Winfrey in Cleveland. Perhaps coffee was needed after all. In his video, he did repeatedly say ‘It’s over with.’
Hopefully, this isn’t the case for his time in a Cleveland Browns jersey.
