Why are the Cincinatti Bengals trying to basically force Chad Johnson to Play for them, when he....?

who knows. you would think when a players makes it up in his mind that he dosent want to play for you, a team would be like okay, cut em, trade em or get rid of him some kind of way. the bengals have had enough distractions this offseason and now it seems like they are content on having these uneccessary distractions carry over into the regular season as well. dosent make sense!

I've got to be honest, I love what the Bengals are doing. Chad Johnson signed a contract, he said that he would play for the Bengals for a set number of years and for a set dollar amount (and I'm sorry, I don't remember off hand what the deal actually was). Now Johnson decides that deal wasn't good enough and wants more. Honestly, I don't think he's worth it, as it is he's among the top 5 highest paid receivers, and he didn't exactly have the greatest season ever. He's being greedy and selfish, and the sad thing is that what he's doing isn't anything new, players have done it in the past and he's seen it work. So yeah, I love that the Bengals are actually standing up for themselves and telling Johnson that he can either honor the contract that he WILLING signed a few years ago, or he can just not play.

It really does matter that he signed a contract. If he agreed to those terms, then what is he complaining about? If a construction team signs a contract to build a house in three weeks, they BETTER get it done. Hasn't any pro athlete ever heard of "breach of contract"?

Marvin Lewis is doing the right thing... everytime a guy wants to cry like a 3 year old because of a deal HE AGREED TO just to get away from someone, or get more money, let those b@stards sit the bench. They want their current team to give in, so don't f*cking do it. By then, with all their whining and complaining, their value will go down, and when the contract ends, another team can take a chance on him for less money. That's assuming, of course, he'll be happy there.

It's sickening that these pro athletes make all this money, yet are never satisfied with what they have. $40 million just to play football?!?!?! $hit! I'd play pro football in any city for $40,000/year! That'd definitely beat working in a steel mill or a grocery store.

I forgot.... if the Bengals were to trade him to a bad team, he could have the NFLPA step in and nix it. It worked for T.O. when he was gonna be traded to Baltimore for a 2nd round pick, so I'm sure after setting that precedence, it'd work for Johnson.

OK, I'm from Cincinnati, and I use to "love" Chad Johnson.

The main thing is NFL teams do not want to give in to a player under contract. This is Chad's third contract with the Bengals, and he was totally happy with all three when he signed, now he wants more or he threatens to sit.

The Bengals will take a 8 million cap hit if they trade him before June 1st. I think, after June 1st, it may be only a 4m hit this year, and 4m hit next year. But I'm not totally sure on that.

I say let him sit the whole season and he can not only lose his salary for the year, but lose a year towards his NFL pension.

There was not a good enough WR available in the first round to replace Chad. Matter of fact, there was no WR chosen in the first round. We picked up a WR in the second and fourth round that could maybe step in. Caldwell is a 4.3 burner (3rd round) from Florida. I think he can replace the speed that Chad has.

Chad's antics will also cost him endorsements if he continues to act like a baby.

Edit: Also, if he sits out, he won't be near the team and won't be a distraction. And, if I was going to trade him, it would be to the worst team in the league with no hope of winning 3 games!

The owner will not give into Chad Johnson's demands. Put yourself in the owners shoes for a second. If you give into Johnson's trade demands, there will undoubtedly be other Bengal players seeing that as a sign of weekness on the owners part and all of the sudden you have half of the team coming out and demanding a trade. I like how the owner is handling it so far. The only person Chad Johnson will be hurting if he sits out is Chad Johnson. He will be fined everyday he's not at practice, and he won't be getting a game check either. This is similar to the Lance Briggs trade demands to the Chicago Bears last offseason, and we see what came of that. I think when the smoke clears, Johnson will be on the field to start the season in a Bengals uniform.

He's one of the top receivers in the game. How would they find any type of equivalent value for a player like that in a trade? Not with draft picks: We all know they're a crap shoot, especially when compared to a proven NFL player like Johnson. There were no receivers drafted in the first round, how could the Bengals know that they were getting someone to replace him?

He's also still under contract. If he holds out, they'll fine him for every day that he does. He agreed to the contract, the Bengals are under no obligation to change it or follow his wishes.

He's the #2 paid receiver in the game, what is he crying about? He also plays with one of the top QBs in the game, where else is he gonna find that?

Basically, he's being an idiot. It's a shame because he's so talented and has personality.

EDIT- I wouldn't cut him loose. He signed the contract, he took the money and he knew what he was getting into. It's not like the Bengals are a bad team. If I were the Bengals I'd f*ck with him for awhile before I got rid of him to punish him.

Well, there were major cap considerations, including a cap hit of over $8 million this year.

They drafted three wide receivers, Jerome Simpson, Adnre Caldwell, and Mario Urrutia.

There seems to be a measure of 'who is the boss' in this matter. I'm not sure if that is Paul Brown in the front office, or Marvin lewis or both...

Funny part is, as messy as the Javon Walker precedent has been, Washington's offer was ridiculous considering what the Pats paid for Randy Moss, or even what the Chargers paid for Chris Chambers. Seriously, look what Washington paid for Clinton Portis. Hullo!

I guess the Bengals are retarded, as usual.

Love your questions, by the way...

EDIT: I get the cancer part. That's probably the piece that hurts the Bengals the most. All I can figure is that they seriously intend to keep him, one way or another.

Once the Cincinnati Bungles, always the Cincinnati Bungles.

It's a power struggle; the Bungles want Chad Johnson to know just who "owns" him - regardless of what it does to the team.

In football, TEAMS win the game. In Cincinnati, INDIVIDUALS play the game, not the team.

A TEAM would have jumped at Washington's offer for Chad Johnson. Since the entire squad - from the owner on down - is a collection of individuals, don't look for the Bungles to be in the Superbowl anytime soon.

I would trade him and absorb the cap hit. Get something in return. His value will diminish if he sits out.

But to all you people who say he signed the contract he should honor it , that is absurd. How come that statement only works one way? How come when an underachieving player with a huge contract gets cut you don't hear fans rise up and say the team had a contract with him they should honor it. That argument is totally ridiculous. If Chad wants out then trade him and get a return before it is too late.

Chad Johnson signed a contract to play for the Cincinnati Bengals and he should honor that contract. He does not have the right to play for any other team.

Also, if owners always give players what they want, then the bad teams will never become good since players will not want to play for them.