Chad Johnson: A Summary of His Value as a Bengal in 2008 (UPDATED)

On June 3rd, WDR noted that there were likely two potential versions of Chad Johnson that would take the field this year.  In summary, these versions were:

1. A Chad who is no longer as committed to the Bengals who sandbags his effort this year and is a distraction in general.

2. A Chad who is still committed to performance on the field (won't sabotage his future earnings potential) and is a distraction in general.

In recent interviews and chats, Chad has said the offseason stunts were all business and that he loves his fans and Cincinnati and is ready to put on a show again this year.

This confirms that we are probably dealing with version number 2 of Chad.  Not the worst thing in the world, but not what we had in the past, sadly.  However, it's important to elaborate even further with a few more possible outcomes.

First, Chad may still sandbag his effort a little by milking this ankle injury.  You'll notice how he emphasizes that he is nowhere close to 100% and makes it clear he is indeed hurt.  This, of course, allows Chad to punish the Bengals for not giving into his business demands while still having a plausible story that keeps him in the clear from blame.

Second, Chad may really have viewed the entire offseason as a business maneuver.  It failed and now he's ready to move on and play the season.  This is the best case scenario as we basically would have a fully committed Chad back.  Is it naive to believe this will happen, probably, but it's still a possibility.

If so, Mikey Brown & Co do deserve at least a little credit for calling his bluff.  However, let's not get ahead of ourselves since it's not clear Mikey knows any other strategy for dealing with anything besides doing his whole "my way or the highway" routine (see Stadium Deal for further evidence).  Besides, would you rather have Chad or the deal the Redskins were offering us a few months ago?  And if Chad is back, did we need to draft two receivers this year given how horrible the defense has been?

Regardless, keep an eye on that ankle injury.  He had surgery.  That is legit.  However, it is not a serious injury and he should be back and ready to perform with little drama.  If he does just that, we can work with Chad going forward.  If not, well, let's not think about that for now.

Comments

[Klinglered]

Chad's a veteran and it seems every year veterans across the league find ways to get out of practicing at training camp. So I'd expect him to try and miss a couple of two a days like any other veteran would in his situation. I'd rather he miss a couple of practices now than reinjure it later because the offense needs him to be great to open up space for the running game and the rest of the WR's.

[Sleeping With Bieniemy]

Indeed, that crossed my mind as well, Klinglered. I have no problem with that at all...especially for aging but still potentially excellent veterans like Big Willie. No need for him to do anything but maximum healing time during the offseason.

The more I think about the Chad situation the more I am optimistic that the offseason of ranting from him will be almost meaningless as far as his performance and effect on the team. He may not be as "lovable" anymore but who cares? The time when we needed Chad's personality as well as talent is past. We just need his talent now.