I was wondering why he got released and found a few articles here and there. At Houston he was a top ranked RT and people were dumbfounded when he was released. It may have been because of the 6.8 million he was making.
I did some looking and the year after he was released, Arian Foster YPA dropped from 4.4 to 4.1. That may or may not have had something to do with a new RT. Couldn't judge about pass protecting stats because they had musical QBs in 2011, his last year there, but it "looks" like he did well protecting TJ Yates who was said to hold on to the ball almost longer than anyone else.
PFF article from March 2012:
https://www.profootballfocus.com/blog/2 ... he-market/
Looks like the Chiefs released him over money and draft issues because they tagged Brandon Albert (who was shocked by the release) and eventually drafted Eric Fisher #1 overall.
"Many were caught by surprise, including one of Winston's teammates -- left tackle Branden Albert.
What???? — Branden Albert (@Balbert76) March 7, 2013"
http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/nf ... t/1969591/
http://www.arrowheadpride.com/2013/3/7/ ... -nfl-draft
"Kansas City Chiefs, who released him only one year into a four-year, $22 million contract."
www.nfl.com/.../eric-winston-arizona-ca ... eyear-deal
As far as the Cardinals, they probably released him because he got embarrassed by KamTrack.
They may have had money issues too, looking for less of a zone blocking tackle (Winston's forte) and more of a pass protector. But that's just a guess on my part.
From what I could find, it looks like the Cards had signed Eric to a 1 year deal worth between 1.25 million and 2 million. They certainly have enough tackles on their roster without him though. I counted 6 including Bobby Massie, Max Starks, and Jared Veldheer.
imho, this whole thing comes down to money, room on the roster, and teams being paranoid about an older player. I'm going to be positive and think that he's going to do well for us. It will certainly be nice to have someone that doesn't spend half the season injured. And he already knows the zone blocking scheme which he learned from Alex Gibbs.