Early this morning, we were shocked he returned to practice and jogged onto the field. Even heard from various sources he was catching passes, running routes, talking to other players while other players declined that he was a distraction. Heard that there was 1,423 ESPN crew members and the New York Times. Heard that he wasn't participating in wide receiver drills, showing negative body language (we'll assume just about anything), though he was dealing with an aliment.

Johnson's agent, Oil Slick, confirms that Johnson's ailment is an ankle injury. Apparently he suffered it during one of the practices during... no. Apparently he suffered it working out on his own... no. Apparently it was a slip after putting his socks back on after showing off his birthday suit... no. The team didn't confirm it and there's no indication of how the ankle was "injured" in the first place. For the time being, we're calling BS.

UPDATE: Johnson refuses practice.

Excellent. If you ever wonder, always know that Oil Slick is a slippery agent using the same tactics with one that he does another. Case in point, a wide receiver that shows his team-like spirit on his sleeve , Chad Johnson.

The club released a statement that said Johnson refused to practice Thursday morning after complaining about a back ailment to the training staff. But the team said he made no such mention of any problems during a physical earlier in the morning when a team doctor cleared him to participate.

Here's the confusing nature of things though. Bengals.com writes, in the headlines, "Bengals: Chad Refused to Practice ". Marvin Lewis comments:

"It was good. I'm not going to beat around the bush. Obviously all of you guys are here to see if Chad was going to show, and obviously he did. But at some point earlier in the morning, he expressed to the medical staff that he had some sort of ailment, and we're investigating what kind of ailment it is. They're going to do some further studying. We'll see how it goes for the rest of the weekend."

"Anyway, he's here and went through the meetings and those things, but obviously didn't take any reps, which is kind of good, because it allows us to continue to move forward. The young guys need the work; it's good work for them and good opportunity to keep going. I think that's where we are."

Oil Slick says this:

"Chad Johnson was given a physical this morning by one of the Bengals' team doctors. He did not report any physical problems to the doctor, and he was cleared by the doctor to practice. Later, after the physical was concluded, he told our training staff that his back was sore. He refused to practice."

Wondering though, if the team does do an "investigation" on Chad's ailment, and comes up with nothing, what then? Do the Bengals fine him? Does Chad over-react? What then?

UPDATE: Chad practices in afternoon.

Dudes, I give up .

Even though his health and state of mind were a complete mystery, Chad Johnson took the field on Thursday afternoon and went through drills and receiving lines like it was the old days after sitting out the morning with what his agent called an ankle injury and the team called a back problem.