Kellen Winslow reportedly trashed Cali rental home; attorney calls claim 'bogus'

Recently-traded tight end Kellen Winslow was recently accused of trashing an expensive rental ($9000 per month) home in California.

By Will Brinson

May 23, 2012 at 11:03 pm ET • 1 min read

Winslow reportedly trashed a house in Cali. (Getty Images)

Kellen Winslow's been up in the news a lot lately because of his recent trade from Tampa Bay to Seattle. And now the new Seahawks tight end has been accused of trashing a $9000-a-month rental home in California.

His attorney, however, calls the claim "bogus." Brent Schrotenboer of the San Diego Union-Tribune obtained a claim filed against Winslow that alleges the tight end left a rental home in Rancho Santa Fe in -- literally -- crappy condition.

"Every corner of the home was damaged," the claim alleges. "The house was overpowered with a putrid stench of animal waste."

According to the claim, Persian rugs "were stained with dog urine and also littered with dog feces," and the resulting alleged damage cites $133,000 in damage.

However, Winslow's lawyer said that the claim was a "shakedown."

"It's a shakedown of a professional athlete," Winslow's attorney Brian Watkins said.

Watkins also said that "the dog had an accident on the rug" and that any damage to the walls was the result of hanging flat-screen televisions. Additionally, he claims Winslow "was rarely even there."

"They want to portray it as though Kellen Winslow had a fraternity of football friends partying," Watkins said. "But the house was rented for his wife, who was pregnant. She was living there with her mother and a housekeeper. There was no partying going on. Kellen was rarely even there. "

These sort of actions against athletes renting residences aren't entirely uncommon. What makes the claim against Winslow interesting is the timing of it -- there's some belief that Winslow was traded by the Buccaneers because new coach Greg Schiano is trying to clean up the locker room.

If he indeed failed to take care of the residence in the manner that the claim indicates, it's just another incident that makes that logic seem more plausible.

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