10-03-2016, 02:17 PM
(10-03-2016, 01:44 PM)Shake n Blake Wrote: Meh. Both the halftime incident (which none of us know what actually happened) and the trade demand can both be traced back to Chad's desire to win. All the best WRs want the ball in their hands. It wasn't like Chad wanted to selfishly pad his playoff stats or something ridiculous. Chad wanted the ball because it was obvious to anyone watching that our 17-14 lead was tedious at best. Chad was our star player and best chance. He wanted to carry the team in a down moment.
As far as the trade demand. I doubt I can still find the old article buried on bengals.com, but Chad was quoted saying he was upset that the FO wasn't pursuing FA help for the defense, which was pretty awful at the time. I can't say I blame him for being upset. The defense had been bad for around 15 years at that point, and it was holding back a good offense.
I can't really defend all the silly stuff he did at the end (gator wrestling, dancing with the stars, etc). Some of it was annoying. That said, almost all of it happened during the offseason. Nobody batted an eyelash when Hines danced with the stars. Chad's "reality show" was simply a half hour talk show that was no different than AJ Hawk's podcast. Was it really as toxic as people claimed? Doubtful.
To sum this up, I think people who still hate Chad, probably hate most of our former stars. Most of our big names wanted out at some point. Even Boomer and Munoz. The folks who hate Chad have minimized his accomplishments and exaggerated his negative impact on the team. Pretty much pinning all of the disappointment of the 2005-2010 teams on 1 player for convenience. Those teams had a plethora of reasons why they never completely broke through. Namely a poor defense and weak run game. Chad was just a convenient fall-guy.
Dancing with the Stars was sort of the "in" thing to do at that point, and it was believed that is actually helped you stay in shape. Not to mention the deposit to your bank account. The VH1 reality shows were corny and dumb. Then you throw in the relationship with Evelyn Lozada (beyond gorgeous) and I think he began to get a little caught up in television and thinking he could become a star.
As far as demanding a trade. Prior to this current batch of players, who live under far less Mike Brown control, who hasn't wanted out? You're Chad Johnson, one of the most skilled players in the league, and you are languishing on a team with a very good offense, but a terrible defense. A team led by a supposed defensive mastermind (I never understood how the defenses were not better until Zimmer got here). It's also a team with an incredibly cheap owner and a reputation for losing. Honestly, who would not get tired of it? Eventually I would think "let me out of here so I can go win something somewhere else during these precious few years I have left". I have said before that I always hoped he would have stuck with New England so that he could have tasted success.
Chad Johnson, not Ocho Cinco, put Cincinnati back on the map. He made the highlight reels and reminded people there was still a football team known as the Bengals. For that, the franchise owes him a debt of gratitude.
