CINCINNATI -- New Bengals offensive tackle and NFL Players Association president Eric Winston said Wednesday that tweets he sent two months ago criticizing comments Marvin Lewis made about concussions were not directed specifically toward the coach.
Winston, who was signed Tuesday by the Bengals, said the critical messages he posted were in response to a broader issue the NFL has had of not taking concussion symptoms seriously enough. Lewis' comments helped highlight that problem.
"I didn't refute it, but it wasn't about Marvin," Winston said in front of his new locker Wednesday. "Some of that had been going around. Being an advocate for players, it is what it is. My comments never actually mentioned his name. So it really didn't have anything to do with that. Sometimes, that's pumped up a little bit."
During a news conference in October, Lewis said concussions "linger longer" in players now because of the enhanced media attention they receive.
That prompted Winston, then an out-of-football free agent, to revert to his role as NFLPA head. He rattled off a series of tweets blasting what Lewis said.
"Always good to see the NFL educating their HCs on health/safety. Glad they are taking the lead on serious issues like concussions. #sarcasm," Winston tweeted. "Perpetuating the idea that it's the medias fault that concussions ["linger"] longer just shows how far we still have to go in educating every1."
Lewis didn't respond to the criticism from Winston and others at the time.
Winston's tweets didn't cause any issues with Bengals officials when he met with them just before signing.
During his news conference Wednesday, Lewis actually went out of his way to praise Winston and say that he had hoped to land him a week ago when the veteran offensive lineman traveled to Minnesota for a tryout that ultimately didn't work out. Lewis said Winston has impressed him off the field in recent years with the way he has operated in some of the meetings the NFLPA has had with the league's competition committee on which Lewis serves.
"We wish [we] could have just brought him on the plane from Houston if we would've known where we were at that point," Lewis said, joking about getting Winston to leave his Houston-area home and to come to Cincinnati with the team after its 22-13 win there two weeks ago.
"He's a guy that if called upon to play, he can do it at a high level. He did a nice job in Seattle this year in snaps he got there, so I was excited when Minnesota didn't sign him that we were able to get him here."
The Bengals signed Winston two weeks after placing starting right tackle Andre Smith on season-ending injured reserve with a torn triceps. With Marshall Newhouse still in the mix, Winston may not start right away, but the 31-year-old gives them an additional body at the position.