Eric Joseph Winston (born November 17, 1983) is a former

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team wi ...

offensive tackle. He played in college at the

University of Miami The University of Miami (UM, UMiami, Miami, U of M, and The U) is a private research university in Coral Gables, Florida. , the university enrolled 19,096 students in 12 colleges and schools across nearly 350 academic majors and programs, i ...

and was drafted by the Houston Texans in the third round of the

2006 NFL Draft The 2006 National Football League Draft, the 71st in league history, took place in New York City, New York, at Radio City Music Hall on April 29 and April 30, 2006. For the 27th consecutive year, the draft was telecast on ESPN and ESPN2, with add ...

. Winston has also played for the

Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The ...

, Arizona Cardinals, and Cincinnati Bengals. He was the president of the

National Football League Players Association The National Football League Players Association, or NFLPA, is a labor union representing National Football League (NFL) players. The NFLPA, which has headquarters in Washington, D.C., is led by president J. C. Tretter and executive director DeM ...

(NFLPA) from 2014 to 2020.

Early years

Winston played high school football at Robert E. Lee High School in Midland, Texas, where he was ranked amongst the most talented high school

tight end The tight end (TE) is a position in American football, arena football, and Canadian football, on the offense. The tight end is often a hybrid position with the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a wide receiver. Lik ...

s in the country. He played alongside fellow NFL running back

Cedric Benson Cedric Myron Benson (December 28, 1982 – August 17, 2019) was an American professional football player who was a running back in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Texas Longhorns and was recognized as a co ...

, and the two helped win three Texas 5A state championships.

College career

Winston chose to attend college at the

after being heavily recruited by several other schools. At

Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a coastal metropolis and the county seat of Miami-Dade County in South Florida, United States. With a population of 442,241 at ...

, Winston majored in International Finance and Marketing and played offensive tackle. He initially was set to play

for the

Hurricanes A tropical cyclone is a rapidly rotating storm system characterized by a low-pressure center, a closed low-level atmospheric circulation, strong winds, and a spiral arrangement of thunderstorms that produce heavy rain and squalls. Depend ...

, but made the switch before his sophomore year. Winston was widely considered one of the best offensive tackles to enter the

. However, an

anterior cruciate ligament The anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) is one of a pair of cruciate ligament Cruciate ligaments (also cruciform ligaments) are pairs of ligaments arranged like a letter X. They occur in several joints of the body, such as the knee joint and th ...

injury during his junior year made his draft stock drop, and several draft scouting organizations expressed slight worry over the possible implications of the injury and subsequent surgery on his play. Winston was also a standout student, graduating in three years with a GPA above 3.5, and he was a 2005

All-America The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed upon an amateur sports person from the United States who is considered to be one of the best amateurs in their sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an All-Am ...

selection. He was a member of the Pi Kappa Alpha Fraternity.

Professional career

Houston Texans

Winston was drafted in the 3rd round of the 2006 NFL Draft. He started the final seven games as a rookie at right tackle in 2006 and proceeded to start 87 games for them until 2011. He signed a contract extension prior to the 2008 season. The Texans released him on March 12, 2012.

Kansas City Chiefs

Winston signed with the

on March 17, 2012. On October 7, 2012, Winston spoke out about Kansas City Chiefs fans, who he thought were cheering an injury to quarterback

Matt Cassel Matthew Brennan Cassel (born May 17, 1982) is a former American football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 14 seasons. A member of seven NFL teams, Cassel's most notable stints were with the New England Patriots ...

. No video evidence has ever been produced to support Winston's claim. In a post game interview, he claimed "this isn't the

Roman Colosseum The Colosseum ( ; it, Colosseo ) is an oval amphitheatre in the centre of the city of Rome, Italy, just east of the Roman Forum. It is the largest ancient amphitheatre ever built, and is still the largest standing amphitheatre in the world to ...

" and "it is hard economic times". He mentioned that he came to the understanding he probably won't live as long because he plays this game, but cheering over a player getting knocked out is "100% sickening". He was released by the Chiefs on March 6, 2013.

Arizona Cardinals

Winston signed a one-year contract with the Arizona Cardinals on July 25, 2013.

Seattle Seahawks

Winston signed a one-year contract with the Seattle Seahawks on July 29, 2014. Winston failed to make the final 53-man roster, and was released on August 30, 2014.

Cincinnati Bengals

Winston signed a one-year contract with the Cincinnati Bengals on December 2, 2014. On March 9, 2016, the Bengals re-signed Winston to a one-year, $1.09 million contract. On March 10, 2017, the Bengals re-signed Winston to his third consecutive one-year contract. He was released on September 2, 2017. He was re-signed by the Bengals on November 8, 2017 after

Jake Fisher Jake Fisher (born April 23, 1993) is a former American football player. He played college football for the University of Oregon. He was drafted by the Cincinnati Bengals as an offensive tackle in the second round of the 2015 NFL Draft. He sw ...

went down with an illness.

NFL Players Association

In March 2014, Winston was elected president of the

(NFLPA), succeeding

Domonique Foxworth Domonique Foxworth (born March 27, 1983) is a former American football cornerback who played in the National Football League (NFL). Foxworth played college football for the University of Maryland. He was drafted by the Denver Broncos in the third ...

. Prior to being elected president, Winston had been involved with the NFLPA in other capacities, including being elected as a co-alternate NFLPA representative for the Houston Texans in 2010 and serving on committees for agent discipline and finance. He was also vocal during the

2011 NFL lockout The 2011 National Football League Player lockout was a work stoppage imposed by the owners of the NFL's 32 teams that lasted from March 12, 2011, to July 25, 2011. When the owners and the NFL players, represented by the National Football League ...

. Winston has stated that his first priorities for his presidency will be player health and safety, financial literacy, and workplace conditions, especially in the locker room. He was succeeded by J. C. Tretter in March 2020.

Personal life

Winston is married, and has two daughters and one son. He also does volunteer work for the

Shriners Hospitals for Children Shriners Children's is a network of non-profit medical facilities across North America. Children with orthopaedic conditions, burns, spinal cord injuries, and cleft lip and palate are eligible for care and receive all services in a family-center ...

References

External links

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Miami Hurricanes football bioHouston Texans bioSeattle Seahawks bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Winston, Eric 1983 births Living people People from Midland, Texas Robert E. Lee High School (Midland, Texas) alumni Players of American football from Texas American football offensive tackles Miami Hurricanes football players Houston Texans players Kansas City Chiefs players Arizona Cardinals players Seattle Seahawks players Cincinnati Bengals players Presidents of the National Football League Players Association Trade unionists from Texas