Center LeCharles Bentley left the Browns facility in Berea with a suitcase at lunchtime Wednesday and general manager Phil Savage later confirmed that Bentley had asked for and received his release.

Bentley did not show up for a morning team meeting, but spoke with Savage and coach Romeo Crennel after the first of two minicamp practices and they granted his request.

"The landscape of our team has changed from July, 2006," Savage said. "We want to wish him the best of luck in his pursuits, whatever they are. He's indicated he wants to play this year. There's no way for us to know whether he can or cannot.

"As far as the Browns and LeCharles, this is a chapter that finally comes to an end. We've got some closure to it now. We can go our separate ways in a positive manner and focus on the '08 season and training camp."

Bentley's agent, Jonathan Feinsod, did not respond to messages seeking comment.

Bentley spoke to reporters outside before being picked up by his mother. Asked if he'd asked for his release, he smiled and said, "Would I do that?" Asked about supposed bad blood between him in the Browns, he said, "Not any more."

Bentley suffered a torn patellar tendon on the first play of training camp in 2006 and contracted a staph infection that he said was life-and-limb threatening and required three more surgeries.

"It was a unique circumstance in terms of him being a local icon, playing at St. Ignatius and Ohio State, it was going to be the trifecta in playing for the Browns," Savage said. "It just didn't work out.

"It was a big disappointment for everybody, particularly him. He's got great pride in the kind of player he had been prior to getting here. He's got expectations and goals of trying to reach that level again. It's going to be somewhere else, apparently, at this point."

Bentley, 28, a Pro Bowler in New Orleans, Pro Bowler passed the Browns' physical Monday night, along with a running test that consisted of a series of 20 40-yard dashes. Savage said Bentley had also been cleared to play by his own doctor in New York.

Savage said he did not know what happened between Monday night and Wednesday morning. Bentley spoke to reporters Tuesday and hinted that he wasn't sure about his future in Cleveland.

"We've already gotten a note from his agent," Savage said. "We have a good relationship with those two guys. They've indicated they appreciate the way things were handled."

Kellen Winslow will attend the Browns' mandatory three-day minicamp that begins in Berea Tuesday. His off-season demand for a new contract led some to speculate that Winslow would hold out, especially given the history of his new agent, Drew Rosenhaus.

But Winslow's level of participation is unsure after he underwent a procedure to clean out his right knee after the Pro Bowl. Winslow originally hurt the knee in a motorcycle accident in spring, 2005.

The Browns will hold two practices Tuesday and Wednesday and one on Thursday that will cap a month of off-season training activities. Then the team will break until training camp begins, tentatively on July 23.

There may be no word until Tuesday morning on Monday's scheduled physical for center LeCharles Bentley. The former Ohio State star has been out the past two years after tearing his patellar tendon in July, 2006, and contracting a staph infection that required three more surgeries.

General manager Phil Savage will address the media at 10 a.m. Tuesday.

Cornerback Daven Holly suffered a knee injury in a drill during workouts Wednesday at the Browns training complex.

The Browns are very thin at the position. Holly was expected to compete with Brandon McDonald to replace Leigh Bodden, who was traded to the Detroit Lions this offseason. Eric Wright is the other starter at this point.

Browns defensive back Kenny Wright's April 3 arrest in Pearland, Texas was not his first post-season brush with the law.

Brazoria County (Texas) district attorney Jeri Yenne said Tuesday that Wright already had a marijuana possession charge pending when he was picked up last month in Pearland, a Houston suburb.

Wright was charged March 1 with Class B misdemeanor possession, which is less than two ounces.

According to a probable cause statement obtained from Brazoria County, he was pulled over at 2:50 a.m. in a black Mercedes S550 for driving 51 mph in a 35 mph zone in Pearland. The dispatcher advised the officer that Wright had "two confirmed warrants" through the Harris County Constable's Office, so Wright was arrested. Before his car was towed, a clear plastic bag containing .25 ounces of marijuana was found in the trunk.

A hearing on the March charge is scheduled for June 27.

On April 3, Wright was arrested for a disturbance outside a police station after a quarter-mile foot chase and charged with unlawful restraint, evading arrest and possession of marijuana. The unlawful restraint charge is a Class A misdemeanor, while the others are Class B. A court date has not been set in that case.

At rookie minicamp on May 2, general manager Phil Savage said Wright remained on the team and that the Browns had been in touch with the league about Wright. Wright has played for five teams in his nine-year NFL career.

Asked Tuesday to comment on the prior incident via email, Savage said, "Yes, we're aware of his situation. There is nothing else to report at this time."

An NFL spokesman would not comment on whether Wright would face sanctions under the league's substance abuse policy, saying that was "premature" because he has only been charged.

Players began off-season training activities Tuesday and the first session open to the media is Wednesday.

On the final depth chart of 2007, Wright was listed as the backup to rookie Eric Wright at right cornerback. Kenny Wright played in only seven games last season with one start and was inactive for seven games. He finished with three tackles, a quarterback pressure and three special teams tackles.

Cleveland is very thin in the secondary after starting cornerback Leigh Bodden was sent to Detroit in a trade for defensive lineman Shaun Rogers. Late-October pickup Ricardo Colclough departed for Carolina in free agency and no defensive backs were selected in the draft. Daven Holly and Brandon McDonald are expected to compete for Bodden's spot.

Browns linebacker Willie McGinest told SI.com Tuesday he will retire after his 15th season in the NFL in 2008.

"The game's been good to me," McGinest told a reporter for the web site. "It's been a lot of hard work, but I understand that there comes a certain time when you have to go out with a bang."

To do that, McGinest wants to lead Cleveland on a playoff run.

"The guys on the team finally started believing in the team concept," he said about the Browns' 10-6 season in 2007. "We started coming together and getting really close (after Week 1) … and we started to jell. That was just the start for us."

McGinest's remarks come as no surprise. He will turn 37 in December and is in the final year of a three-year contract he signed in 2006. The native of Long Beach, Calif. has several business endeavors. He is sharp and well-spoken, which makes a job in television seemingly a slam-dunk and even a shot at a big-screen career not so farfetched.

Although he started 11 games and played in 13 last season, he missed the first three following back surgery. When he returned, McGinest became more of a role player and recorded just three sacks, giving him 85 for his career.

At this point, McGinest seems most valuable for his locker room leadership. He won three Super Bowls in 12 seasons in New England and was the perfect choice to serve as one of the Browns' captains in '07. With five prime-time games on the 2008 schedule, he'll be needed even more to keep the team on an even keel.

McGinest could have more to say on his future next week. Cleveland begins OTAs Tuesday and the first session open to the media is Wednesday. But even if McGinest plays a lesser role on the field again in '08, he'll continue to be one of coach Romeo Crennel's go-to guys.

The Browns announced the signing of 15 rookie free agents, contingent on them passing physicals. The team will hold a rookie minicamp this weekend that is closed to the public.

Signed were linebacker Jermaine Dias (Virginia), defensive backs Jerrid Gaines (Miami U.), Justin Harrison (Illinois), Gerard Lawson (Oregon State) and Darnell Terrell (Missouri), quarterback Craig Hormann (Columbia), tight end Kolomona Kapanui (West Texas A&M), offensive linemen James Lee (South Carolina State), Robert Powell (Purdue) and Eric Young (Tennessee), receiver Lance Leggett (U. of Miami), running back Travis Thomas (Notre Dame), defensive linemen Chase Ortiz (Texas Christian) and Brian Schaefering (Lindenwood) and kicker Jason Reda (Illinois).

Cleveland also claimed safety Steve Cargile, a Chanel High School product and Columbia University graduate, off waivers from the Denver Broncos. Cargile, 6-foot-2 and 210 pounds, spent two years in Denver and appeared in 15 games, 12 in 2007, mainly seeing action on special teams.

The booming industry and hype surrounding the NFL draft actually aided the Cleveland Browns Sunday.

General manager Phil Savage acknowledged the stock of UNLV inside linebacker Beau Bell and Missouri tight end Martin Rucker dropped since the season ended. And Savage admitted that if it hadn't, he might not have been able to land Bell and Rucker in the fourth round, trading up with Dallas to the Nos. 104 and 111 spots.

"They were players that we evaluated back in February as potential second- and third-round type of players," Savage said. "Both players incidentally came out of the fall with very good grades. The process of this draft, be it the Senior Bowl, the combine, interviews, private workouts, or what have you, I think in both these players' cases their status dropped to a degree. In our eyes they really didn't.

"Nothing's changed since the season. You’ve got the same tapes and games to watch. What changed a bit was the fact that the NFL tries to pick these kids apart. You’re not going to find the perfect player, particularly in the fourth round, but we feel good about these two guys."

Bell is a hard-hitter with good instincts, but Pro Football Weekly's "2008 Draft Preview" said the 6-1 1/2, 250-pounder "has a bad body — is high cut and top-heavy and looks like he has not seen a weight room." It also said he "too often leaves his feet and whiffs in the open field."

Such remarks didn't seem to faze Savage.

"This kid is kind of a hammer-type hitter and if you saw some of his highlights he really knows how to finish," Savage said. "He brings some explosion at the end of plays. We feel like he is a powerful tackler. I think he gives us a dimension to a degree that we have not have with the current group on board."

Rucker 6-4 1/2 and 247 pounds, was an All-American and set the career reception record at a university that produced Hall of Fame tight end Kellen Winslow Sr. The knock on him was his lack of blocking ability. But Savage said Rucker didn't line up like a tight end, but as a receiver in Missouri's high-powered offense.

"Martin Rucker was not asked to block much," Savage said. "He was in a system that advocated being in the slot moving around. He had terrific production as a receiver. At the Senior Bowl he showed some improvement throughout the week. It was really the first time he played on the end of the line as a traditional tight end for any length of time. We feel like we can teach him.

"How many tight ends really do block in this league? You couldn’t name one I bet that’s known as a blocker. This is a passing league and this guy is a pass catcher."

Savage extension expected soon

There have been reports for weeks that a contract extension for Savage is imminent. He said it probably will take place "in the next week or so."

"It's more or less a handshake and a wink, but nothing on paper yet," he said.

Winslow talks update

Tight end Kellen Winslow Jr. has three years remaining on a contract that will pay him $4 million in 2008, $4.5 million in 2009 and $4.75 million in 2010. Winslow said at the Pro Bowl he wants a new contract and his new agent Drew Rosenhaus said at the combine that he and Savage had discussed the issue. Rosenhaus has a history of holding his clients out of training camp in such situations.

"We've had a few conversations this spring," Savage said of Rosenhaus. "Obviously Drew has got a lot going on. We've had a lot going on in terms of free agency and getting ready for the draft. We’ve kept open lines of communication in terms of talking through some things.

"You're talking about a player that has three years left on his deal, one year was added after the motorcycle accident, so I guess that would be up for discussion, but there’s no real indication one way or the other. We're in the off-season, several months away from the real season so we’ll cross that bridge when we get there."

Heiden, Winslow will take it slowly

Tight end Steve Heiden recently underwent what his agent Jack Wirth called a "minor" procedure on his back and Winslow had an elective off-season procedure on his right knee to clean out scar tissue. It was the fourth surgery on the knee Winslow seriously injured in a 2005 motorcycle accident.

Savage isn't sure either will do much in the Browns' veteran minicamp June 10-12, but believes they will be ready when training camp opens, tentatively on July 23.

"They are going to be around, but in terms of how much they are actually able to do and get on the field, I would be guessing at this point," Savage said. "In my mind realistically you would like to have them for training camp. I think we would have concern if that didn’t happen, but if they are not able to do as much in June, they are both veteran players, they have been around. I don’t know if we would be that concerned about it."

What about Jamal's backup?

Savage got defensive when asked about the continuing reports on The NFL Network that Cleveland would draft a running back to back up eight-year veteran Jamal Lewis.

Currently the Browns have Jason Wright, primarily a special teams player, and Jerome Harrison, a fan favorite the past two preseasons.

Asked about the need at running back, Savage said, "I don't know why people keep saying that. With Jason Wright and Jerome Harrison, we're pretty comfortable with the running backs we have. We discussed that in meetings quite a bit. Hopefully Jerome will do something more than he's done in the past."

Notes

Cornerback Daven Holly, a restricted free agent, is expected to sign his tender soon. He's passed the deadline he could sign elsewhere. … Savage said the Browns hoped to sign 10 to 15 free agents and will invite more for tryouts at this weekend's rookie minicamp. … Savage said Paul Hubbard, a 6-2 1/2, 221-pound receiver from Wisconsin, will have a chance to succeed Joe Jurevicius. Jurevicius, a 10-year veteran who is 6-5 and 232 pounds, is expected to retire after this season. He asked to move to the third receiver spot after last year because his body couldn't take the wear and tear.

The Browns didn't wait until their first pick on Sunday, No. 122 overall, to get the linebacker they wanted. So they traded with Dallas to move up to No. 104 to select UNLV's Beau Bell.¶
Cleveland surrendered the 122nd pick, along with its fifth-rounder, No. 155.¶
Known as a big hitter, Bell, 6-1 1/2 and 250 pounds, totalled 320 career tackles, second on the school's all-time list. He added 10.5 sacks, 27 tackles for losses, six forced fumbles, one recovery, five pass deflections and four interceptions, one for a touchdown.¶
The Cowboys were also the Browns' trade partner last year when Cleveland nabbed quarterback Brady Quinn 22nd overall.¶

Browns tight end Steve Heiden expects to be cleared for full activity by the end of May after undergoing minor surgery on his back, Heiden's agent Jack Wirth said Friday.

Wirth said Heiden would need three weeks to recuperate. Cleveland's veteran minicamp is scheduled for June 10-12.

"It was very minor, a simple procedure," Wirth said. "They didn't even know if they were going to do it, they were just going to treat it with cortisone. He said, 'Why don't we clean this up so I don't have to keep taking shots?"'