Chad Johnson talk

[miamid45]

Good riddance....hadn't even made the team and screwin around like this!!!!     I guess, when you're rich beyond belief, the idea of truly representing yourself towards your career really isn't that important. 

Bing in the young guys and lets role from there!

[Brian Fein]

The season hasn't even started yet and Philbin is sick of his antics.  Good riddance.

Too bad, I was hoping he had turned it around.

[Phishfan]

I want to go ahead and admit that I did not see this coming (the action, not being cut). I tried to defend him as just a clowner but others repeatedly stressed somethinglike this would happen.

I think cutting him is the rigth decision. Time to move forward with the rest of the season.

[masterfins]

Not surprised.  Although I thought he would last until week 2 or 3 before he started acting up.

[Landshark]

Not surprised.  Although I thought he would last until week 2 or 3 before he started acting up.

Maybe being in his hometown, he was drawn in to old haunts

[masterfins]

I did notice on Weiketrade the other day that his Dolphins Jersey had Ochocinco on the back, not Johnson, plus they left off the third "C" so it was Ochocino.  The chinese will have to scrap those, or more likely sew on a new name.

[EKnight]

I'm just gonna throw this out there as food for thought. According to Philbin, it wasn't the domestic incident that caused the cut. It was an entire slew of things with Chad being Chad. I absolutely get what everyone is saying BUT- my issue is the same one with complaining about Marshall's stuff and his drops: you bring in a player in Marshall who had a career drop issue before he go to Miami and also had a career issue of antics, then you don't get to complain when he drops balls and acts up. Same with Chad- they knew what they were getting with him. It's what they signed up for. How can anyone who hasn't been under a rock for the past six years now be aghast that he would mouth off, become twitter happy or whatever. It's what you signed up for. If you met your gf dancing on a pole, you can't start telling her not to strip afterwards. It was good enough to begin with, and you knew what you were getting. -EK

[Pappy13]

Same with Chad- they knew what they were getting with him. It's what they signed up for.

I disagree. Before they even signed Chad, Philbin had a conversation with him and they told him exactly what they expected of him which I'm sure included the fact that his behavior off the field would be as closely monitored as his play on the field was. Stay on the beaten path and you'll get every chance to contribute, deviate from that path and you'll be shown the door. THAT is what both Chad and the Dolphins signed up for and that's exactly what they both got.

[EKnight]

I have a hard time believing Chad- a grown man- agreed not to Tweer or use foul language when the entire rest of the team had no such restrictions. Edit- I don't mean that disrespectfully at all Pappy. I actually don't believe that Chad (or any grown man) would agree to those kinds of conditions. Do you know specifically what limitations he had/agreed to? -EK

[masterfins]

I'm just gonna throw this out there as food for thought. According to Philbin, it wasn't the domestic incident that caused the cut. It was an entire slew of things with Chad being Chad. I absolutely get what everyone is saying BUT- my issue is the same one with complaining about Marshall's stuff and his drops: you bring in a player in Marshall who had a career drop issue before he go to Miami and also had a career issue of antics, then you don't get to complain when he drops balls and acts up. Same with Chad- they knew what they were getting with him. It's what they signed up for. How can anyone who hasn't been under a rock for the past six years now be aghast that he would mouth off, become twitter happy or whatever. It's what you signed up for. If you met your gf dancing on a pole, you can't start telling her not to strip afterwards. It was good enough to begin with, and you knew what you were getting. -EK

Well Chad was better behaved in N.E. last year, I would guess that was the only reason they agreed to give him a shot, that and he probably had to agree to be on his best behavior.

[Phishfan]

I have a hard time believing Chad- a grown man- agreed not to Tweer or use foul language when the entire rest of the team had no such restrictions. Edit- I don't mean that disrespectfully at all Pappy. I actually don't believe that Chad (or any grown man) would agree to those kinds of conditions. Do you know specifically what limitations he had/agreed to? -EK

I doubt those were the exact terms.

[Pappy13]

I have a hard time believing Chad- a grown man-...

If you say so.

...agreed not to Tweer(sic) or use foul language...

He assaulted his wife. He could be going to jail.

..when the entire rest of the team had no such restrictions.

Far as I know Philbin can cut anybody he wants for whatever reason he wants including off the field actions. Chad wasn't subjected to anything that every single guy on the team isn't subjected to in some form.

Edit- I don't mean that disrespectfully at all Pappy.

No offense taken.

I actually don't believe that Chad (or any grown man) would agree to those kinds of conditions.

You honestly don't think that players with a history of problems aren't told that they'll have to maintain a low profile to stay with the team? I think that's pretty much standard practice for most teams especially with players with a history of problems.

Do you know specifically what limitations he had/agreed to? -EK

No, I don't know specifically what was said in the meeting, but it was probably the pretty standard stuff like "anything that we deem not reflecting the organization in the best light" and certainly something like being arrested for anything would fall under that category. I think that goes WITHOUT saying and perhaps it even WAS said. You can't honestly believe that Chad didn't know that being arrested would be frowned upon.

You can argue that Chad may not have known about the foul language, but that's why that ended in a conversation with Philbin rather than being cut. It's possible that Philbin considered this the 1st strike. Then Chad turned around and tweeted about it making light of the situation, I'm pretty sure that Chad knew that wouldn't go over too well. Philbin may have considered that strike 2. The assault and arrest were strike 3, you're out. I think it's pretty clear where Chads head was when he stated that he didn't care about his profession to his wife. I'm sure that it was said in the heat of the moment, but I've found that things said in the heat of the moment are sometimes the most honest and forthcoming.

[AZ Fins Fan 55]

I was not happy to see that he had been cut. I was hoping he would have been a solid player for us this year. Oh well shit happens now we are back to Hartline as our best receiver......wow that sucks!!!!

[MikeO]

This is something I don't get and I heard it a lot today all over sports talk radio. Why does everyone assume you get 3 strikes? On my job if I was arrested for something like Chad was I would be out the door ASAP. No 2nd and 3rd strike.No waiting till all the facts come out. In some jobs in the "real world" (aka Non Sports World) they don't wait for the legal process to play out. The fact Chad was involved with something where his wife got a 3 inch cut on her forehead and he was arrested is enough to warrant being fired in the real world in many cases (not all, but many.) The fact "some" (not all) teams have that same standard I have no problem with. I don't get where it became written in stone you automatically get 3 strikes so (wink-wink) it doesn't get serious until you are down to the final one.

I also find it shocking that people are surprised that there are different standards for different players. The old Jimmy Johnson quote was something along the lines of, if the 53rd man on the roster falls asleep during a meeting he gets cut. If Troy or Emmitt fall asleep you ask them if they want a blanket or a pillow. It boils down to who the hell is Chad Johnson? He isn't a superstar he is just another player at this point. He F'd up and he is gone. Chad is an old WR coming off a god awful year joining a new team. He didn't earn the respect or have the currency built up within the organization that someone else might have to get the benefit of the doubt.  

The Dolphins knew what they were getting when they signed him. They wanted a veteran WR. Yes they knew of the twitter antics and endzone dances and outlandish talk. They didn't think they were getting Brandon Marshall 2.0 Domestic Violence/arrest nonsense. That isn't what they signed up for. They could have lived with the crazy quotes, press conferences and Philbin would have lost his voice this year talking to him about it endlessly and toning it down. But he wouldn't have been cut over that. And Chad would have been smart enough to not cross THAT line with the interviews once he knew where the line was with Philbin. He would have toe'd the line but not cross it after last weeks talk which aired on HBO.

He was CUT/FIRED because he got arrested. Period! End of story. If Chad didn't get arrested Saturday he would still be a Dolphin today. The line Philbin said of ..."it was more than just one thing"....total and complete BULLSHIT (pardon my language). That is 100% coach speak/political thing to say. If anyone thinks that if Chad wasn't arrested this weekend he would have still been cut on Sunday night they are nuts. He was cut because he got arrested and only because he got arrested.

[Spider-Dan]

This is something I don't get and I heard it a lot today all over sports talk radio. Why does everyone assume you get 3 strikes?

I agree with your sentiment; 3 is no sort of magical number, and I would think that in most reasonable businesses, you can explain one mistake as an anomaly, but the second means you're a problem.  That being said:

On my job if I was arrested for something like Chad was I would be out the door ASAP. No 2nd and 3rd strike.No waiting till all the facts come out.

I don't know what kind of job you have, but I don't think I've ever had a job where my employers would even know if I were arrested on a domestic violence charge (particularly if I made bail without missing a work shift), and I certainly would not have been fired without an opportunity to explain that, for example, I was arrested on a completely fabricated charge and my lawyer will have this thrown out before trial.

When this kind of stuff happens to everyday citizens, it's not a news story like it is for celebrities; I don't know how many of my coworkers have ever been arrested (not convicted... simply arrested) for domestic violence or DUI or assault & battery or failure to pay child support, and I don't imagine I ever will.

Furthermore, as I have previously stated on many, many prior threads, you and I are not elite professional athletes.  My employer could terminate me for no reason at all (CA is an employment-at-will state) and it wouldn't be too difficult to replace me.  So any efforts to compare what would happen to working stiffs (e.g. anyone posting to this forum) is a waste of time.