Former NFL player Kellen Winslow II sentenced to 14 years for rape, assault

Former NFL player Kellen Winslow II will serve 14 years in prison following a sentencing hearing Wednesday in connection with multiple rapes and other sexual offenses against five women. 

The Associated Press reported that the son of San Diego Chargers Hall of Fame receiver Kellen Winslow appeared at the hearing in San Diego Superior Court via video conference. 

The 37-year-old, who played four seasons with the Cleveland Browns; also spent time with the Buccaneers, Patriots and Jets; and at one time was the highest paid tight-end in the NFL, declined to comment prior to his sentencing, explaining that he was advised by his lawyers not to speak. 

“In the future, I do plan to tell my story,” he said.

The AP reported that San Diego County Superior Court Judge Blaine Bowman said Winslow targeted vulnerable women, including a homeless woman and a teenager passed out at a party. 

Bowman reportedly said Wednesday that Winslow can only be described in “two words, and that is a sexual predator.” 

In 2019, Winslow had been found guilty of rape, indecent exposure and other crimes involving three women. The jurors did not agree on charges involving the other two women, though Winslow later pleaded guilty to the charges in exchange for a shorter sentence. 

He faced up to 18 years in prison prior to the February plea deal. 

Winslow must also register as a sex offender for life as part of the plea agreement, according to the AP. 

NBC affiliate KNSD reported that four of Winslow’s victims, as well as one woman’s husband, provided statements at Wednesday’s hearing. 

Jane Doe 4, who as a 17-year-old in 2003 was raped by Winslow at a house party, said through tears that as she testified multiple times throughout the former NFL star’s trial, “Playing the event over and over again shook every bone and nerve in my body.” 

A defense attorney for Winslow, who has two children and whose wife filed for divorce after he was convicted, said Wednesday that he is “a family man” who wants to spend time with his children. 

“He has two kids, two young kids — a boy and a girl— who are basically his pride and joy. And all he really wants to do is get back to those children,” the attorney said, KNSD reported.