CINCINNATI, Nov. 28 (UPI) -- Michael Westbrook, a former first-round draft pick, Wednesday was waived by the Cincinnati Bengals, who have the worst record in the NFL.
A wide receiver in his eighth season, Westbrook had just eight catches for 94 yards, placing him ninth on the Bengals in receiving. He played in nine of the team's 11 games, starting four.
It is just more bad news in a lost season for the Bengals, who are 1-10, with their only win coming over the expansion Houston Texans.
He had been unhappy in Cincinnati.
"It got to be a zoo, and my heart hasn't been in it for the last month and a half, two months," Westbrook was quoted as saying by the team's website after getting word from Coach Dick LeBeau that he had been cut loose. "Twenty-two years of playing football and my heart wasn't there because they gave up on me. I don't know if I'll play again. For now, I'm just going home to laugh at the whole nightmare. I went to (LeBeau) and told him I was thinking about retiring if they didn't release me. He didn't want me to retire and he wouldn't let me go."
Westbrook claimed he was never given a fair shot by the Bengals, especially after he got hurt in training camp.
"Since I was Michael Westbrook, it was like I couldn't make any mistakes," he said. "If I made a mistake, I went from having 40 plays to 10 plays. But another guy could make three mistakes and it wouldn't matter. I guess that was just a reflection of the people running the show. "
The website indicated that Westbrook would get about $1 million of a $4.5 million deal he signed in July.
The receiver of the "Hail Mary" pass thrown by Colorado's Kordell Stewart to beat Michigan in 1994, Westbrook was selected fourth overall in the 1995 draft by the Washington Redskins.
However, he never lived up to expectations, playing 16 games just twice in seven years with the Redskins and compiling 277 catches for 4,280 yards and 24 touchdowns. His best year was 1999, when he had 65 receptions for 1,191 yards and nine touchdowns, all career highs.
During his stay in Washington, Westbrook suffered multiple knee injuries and a neck injury that required the fusing of two vertebrae. He also was involved in an ugly fight with teammate Stephen Davis during a practice in 1997.
The Bengals' coaching staff has no immediate public reaction to Westbrook's comments.
To fill his roster spot, the Bengals activated offensive tackle Reggie Coleman from the reserve/suspended list. He is a rookie from the University of Tennessee.
