Kellen Winslow Jr. is on a mission to reclaim his career.
The veteran tight end is in line for a prominent role with the New York Jets ... as long as his knees cooperate. Once among the most productive tight ends in football, Winslow has no shortage of motivation as he enters his ninth season.
The Seattle Seahawks, who cut Winslow last September, certainly count as motivation.
"They cut me over money. They put me in a bad situation," Winslow said Thursday, via ESPNNewYork.com. "I can't even speak on it. It's just frustrating what happened. You just don't do a vet like that."
Winslow later signed with the New England Patriots, but saw limited game action. There were reports the tight end asked the Patriots for his release because he was dealing with too much pain in his knees. Winslow said it was more about a depth chart that found him buried behind Rob Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez.
"You can't come in Week 3, with those guys, and think you're going to get in," he said. "It wasn't worth me being there in that situation because I know what I can do."
Given all that's happened in New England since last September, the Patriots might have actually been a perfect spot for Winslow right now. But a spot with the Jets is a better fit toward his goal of 100 catches.
It comes down to health, and whether Winslow's knees have any intention of going through the grind of another NFL season. We could have answer by the end of the month.
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