Is Bengals Chad Johnson positioning himself to get out of Cincinnati?

by Josh Kirkendall on Jan 13, 2008 1:51 PM EST in Chad Johnson Campaign

You know, I've tried to understand Chad Johnson's grumbling. I've tried to put myself in his shoes. And I keep coming to the same conclusion that he's positioning himself for a trade. I've seen players let go, traded because of their inability to get past their own grievences (usually contracts). I've also seen players make more of a situation to get what they want -- finding one trivial issue and expanding on it for their own gains.

It makes you wonder if Carson Palmer's point of getting more money to Chad was a thought implemented to Carson by Chad. Doesn't it?

A quality team player doesn't try to settle differences through the media. A quality team player would assure that they're differences aren't known to any of us. A quality team player would know if they're a "cancer" -- though I haven't actually heard anyone associated with the Bengals use that term. A quality team player doesn't feel like a martyr nor feel bad strictly about themselves. Everything that Chad's saying is selfish...

Selfish? What do you mean? Not knowing when you're a distraction means you're not trying to understand what your actions or words mean to your teammates. He wonders why most people classify him as selfish. That, in itself, proves selfishness. You're not trying to understand the issue through the eyes of your teammates, or anyone else.

I still believe that Chad's talents are incredible. The offense would be better with his talents then without them. But I still wonder if we can get that much further with him. Think about it. His abilities and talent, have also given the team only one winning season.

Long story short, this is Chad making a media tour proclaiming what he wants. Not what's in the best interests of the team. Best interests of the team would be to settle your differences without the help of the media and keep breaking records with this team. I hope for the latter, but realize the former is the situation.

I want Chad Johnson in Cincinnati. I want the preminition we all had with Chad and Palmer potentially joining the elite duos of NFL history. But if Chad really wants out of Cincinnati, then he should go. I don't think any fan or player wants someone that really doesn't want to be here.

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Winning Cures Everything

Call me crazy, but I don't think Chad airing his frustrations is automatically a bad thing. One of the most frustrating things about the Bengals this season was the perceived lack of emotion/displeasure about losing. Listening to Justin Smith say nothing emotional in the "Mic'ed Up" segment while the Patriots were playing the Bengals defense for fools was telling. There is no leadership and Chad, in his own Chad way, is filling the vacuum. I'm just glad somebody is talking - and somebody cares.

Moreover, Chad took a beating in the media this past year - a beating that I don't think he deserved. After all, it's not Chad's fault that the defense could not tackle, cover, or pressure the QB. He never called his defense out either - like Ray Lewis did to his offense in Baltimore on multiple occasions. I don't recall Ray Ray being called a "lockerroom cancer."

Chad just wants to win. Let's hope Marvin and his new D coordinator can turn this around.

One concern I have is Rosenhaus's involvement. I have this image of that slimeball playing the role of Iago or Svengali, controlling Chad's comments/actions for his ill, self serving ends. I don't think Chad is in position to hold out for more money, however. He put up good numbers this year but dropped a lot of passes in big situations. Even Rosen-Douchebag couldn't spin that into a new contract this year.

"Ryan, Things in here don't react too well to bullets." - Marko Ramius

by TarZander on Jan 13, 2008 2:51 PM EST reply actions