He is both a unique and talented football player. He is unique in that he plans out touchdown celebrations weeks in advance and sends Pepto Bismol to opposing defenders. He is talented in shattering Bengals receiving records and making spectacular catches that few human beings have any business making. He is Chad Johnson. Unfortunately, people seem to care more about the off-field sideshow than the on-field production. Sure he often brings it upon himself but that is just who he is. We need to stop trying to change the way he behaves because we do not think athletes should act like that. Chad Johnson is a perennial Pro-Bowler but gets ripped for the way he presents himself. Yes his interview with Brian Kenny was about as uncomfortable as an intoxicated Joe Namath speaking with (and hitting on) Suzy Kolber during a Monday Night Football interview. But you know what? Who cares! Manny Ramirez gets away with being, to put it nicely, absent-minded and an annual summer distraction. Yet he has somehow become more popular as a result and people excuse him by saying, “Oh that’s just Manny being Manny.” Boston fans do not care, however, because he produces on the field. This is a mentality that Cincinnati fans need to adopt.
As a Bengals fan, I want a receiver who makes plays on the field, and that is what Chad Johnson is. If the most anyone can say about him is that he is selfish, then we are very lucky. He has never been in the news for being in legal trouble and he has been able to keep himself healthy, playing in every game for the last six seasons. In each those six seasons he has amassed over 1,100 yards and has caught at least 90 balls in the last five seasons. Yet because he is tired of losing and speaks his mind, a local radio station holds a turn in your Chad Johnson jersey promotion in exchange for free tickets to see Cincinnati’s ECHL hockey team. The worst part about this was that Bengals fans actually did it.
All pro athletes this day and age are selfish in some way and that is just the way it is. At least Chad cares about winning. The (expletive first) Chad Johnson Facebook groups need to stop Cincinnati, because how quickly you forget how immense a role he played in turning us from a laughing-stock to a contender. How quickly you forget the hideous yet lovable bleached Mohawk he gave us and his bold and seemingly idiotic predictions that we secretly hoped for prior to a big game.
Call his antics and behavior what you will. Childish, fun, distracting, harmless and annoying are just a few adjectives that have been associated with Chad Johnson’s behavior. Just remember that the Bengals are paying him to catch a football and that he does a fine job at doing so. He is still one of the elite receivers in the game that many teams would love to have as a part of their organization. Fans should want and adore a player who sometimes sleeps in the stadium because he is busy preparing for his next opponent.
Awkward interviews, questionable grammar and comments that would have been better if kept to himself are not good enough reasons to trash a guy like Chad Johnson, a guy who wants so much just to win. When the first Carson Palmer pass to Chad Johnson that results in a touchdown occurs, you know that all will be forgiven. With that in mind, accept his apology and forgive him now if you have a grudge and move on just like Chad has. He was trying to better his situation like all professional athletes do and probably went about it the wrong way. Now he is at training camp getting his ankle healthy and focusing on nothing but a February trip to Tampa Bay, which Bengals fans, is what we should be focusing on too.
One reply on “He’s Just Chad…Being Chad”
I think… people like to report on the off-field sideshow, as you mentioned, because it’s the only thing that can be speculated upon. The on-field results are concrete, all the media can do is report what happened rather than speculate and make assumptions. Well done!