Well, there's always Al Davis and Wayne Weaver. yahoosports.com doesn't think too highly of Bengals owner, Mike Brown.
And then, there's everybody's favorite odd couple, Marvin and Chad. Our man Chick Ludwig checks in today with this, from the Dayton Daily News.
I give it five games....
Brett Favre rumors continue to boil. Now we hear the the commish is involved. Apparently, Roger Goodell is monitoring the situation closely. Where could Favre end up? For that, we turn to our pal Mike Florio, at profootballtalk.com.
I'd love to see him in Tampa. But if you're Baltimore and you've had trouble developing a quarterback since...oh, Johnny Unitas, why wouldn't you leap on this, for a season. Then, you've got Joe Flacco.
Just askin'.
THE BROO VIEW: Cincinnati's Legendary Sportscaster Offer His Thoughts On The Ever Changing World Of Sports
Showing posts with label Chad Johnson. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Chad Johnson. Show all posts
Monday, July 21, 2008
The latest "Broo View Podcast" is now posted on the front page of my web site: http://www.kenbroo.com/. I've got a piece of the interview I conducted Sunday on 700 WLW with Reds beat writer, John Fay. We get into what the Reds may, or may not, do leading up to the trade deadline.
The Bengals report to camp this Sunday and their first two workouts will be one week from today. Chris Henry remains suspended, by the NFL, and unemployed. But his agent hinted last week that the Bengals may be interested in bringing him back. Which led the immensely talented Peter King to deliver one of the all time great quotes in his Monday Morning Quarterback column on si.com. You'll have to scroll into a good story on how Jason Taylor wound up with the Redskins. But it's worth it.
Personally, I'd be in favor of eviction from a county financed stadium if they brought Henry back.
Chad Johnson said today in an espn.com chat that it was only 'business', when he went on several national radio rants this winter. Johnson vacillated between banishing team management, demanding a trade and throwing his quartrback 'under the bus'. Just business? Try doing that in your business and see if you collect another paycheck, let alone one for about $4 million dollars this year.
I've been a long proponent of the Reds re-signing Adam Dunn. Baseball Prospectus apparently is a tad more luke warm to the idea, but still suggests, like I, that Dunn's numbers would be difficult for a team like the Reds to replicate.
Well, this is pretty random. Guy runs out of the stands, half naked, at a soccer match in Moscow this past weekend. And the player who brings the dude to the 'authorities' gets a yellow card from the ref. Look at this!
Almost as good as the fight in the stands Sunday between fans of the Columbus Crew and some fans from an international club that the Crew was playing. Well, maybe even better than that!
See you tonight at 6 & 11p on WLWT Channel 5 in Cincinnati!
The Bengals report to camp this Sunday and their first two workouts will be one week from today. Chris Henry remains suspended, by the NFL, and unemployed. But his agent hinted last week that the Bengals may be interested in bringing him back. Which led the immensely talented Peter King to deliver one of the all time great quotes in his Monday Morning Quarterback column on si.com. You'll have to scroll into a good story on how Jason Taylor wound up with the Redskins. But it's worth it.
Personally, I'd be in favor of eviction from a county financed stadium if they brought Henry back.
Chad Johnson said today in an espn.com chat that it was only 'business', when he went on several national radio rants this winter. Johnson vacillated between banishing team management, demanding a trade and throwing his quartrback 'under the bus'. Just business? Try doing that in your business and see if you collect another paycheck, let alone one for about $4 million dollars this year.
I've been a long proponent of the Reds re-signing Adam Dunn. Baseball Prospectus apparently is a tad more luke warm to the idea, but still suggests, like I, that Dunn's numbers would be difficult for a team like the Reds to replicate.
Well, this is pretty random. Guy runs out of the stands, half naked, at a soccer match in Moscow this past weekend. And the player who brings the dude to the 'authorities' gets a yellow card from the ref. Look at this!
Almost as good as the fight in the stands Sunday between fans of the Columbus Crew and some fans from an international club that the Crew was playing. Well, maybe even better than that!
See you tonight at 6 & 11p on WLWT Channel 5 in Cincinnati!
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
At the ceremony honoring him for hitting career home run number 600, Ken Griffey, Jr, hinted last night, he'd like to stay in Cincinnati. I'm not so sure that won't happen. Junior, as I'm sure you know is under contract through the rest of this season and the team has a $16 million option on him for 2009. I've said for awhile now, that a likely scenario would be for Junior to remain with the Reds through the rest of this season and the team would decline to pick up his option for 2009. But, negotiations would begin soon after the Reds decline that option to keep Griffey, Jr in Cincinnati Red for awhile, at a reduced salary.
If those negotiations falter, the Reds would simply pay him the $4 million buyout and let him walk. His trade value right now is minimal. Griffey isn't have a particularly good season and his salary is rich for just about any except the big market teams. Knowing how Bob Castellini feels about hometown pride and knowing that Junior is from here, my guess is my scenario is at least in the mix of options for 2009. We shall see...
Chad Johnson finally had his ankle surgery today. It went well. But surgery just five weeks before the start of training camp? It's far too late, so says our friend Chick Ludwig of the Dayton Daily News in his recent "Ludwig At Large" post.
Who knew? Tiger Woods has played the last year with a torn ACL. Now, as he announced on his web site today, he's gone for the rest of this season.
And you've got to love the Bengals refereces in this piece by espn.com's Gene Wojciechowski on the Tiger-Rocco playoff. Will the Bengals ever be able to climb out from under the garbage they've buried themselves under?
Speaking of our men in stripes, 2008 first round draft pick, Keith Rivers, has a rookie diary that he's posting on foxsports.com. They're picking up his blog and reposting it....which, I guess is what I'm doing here.
One of the funniest post game interviews after the Celtics beat the Lakers in game 6 last night, turned in by the Celts' Brian Scalabrine. Check this out.
I'll see you tonight at 6 & 11p only on Cincinnati's Channel 5 WLWT!
If those negotiations falter, the Reds would simply pay him the $4 million buyout and let him walk. His trade value right now is minimal. Griffey isn't have a particularly good season and his salary is rich for just about any except the big market teams. Knowing how Bob Castellini feels about hometown pride and knowing that Junior is from here, my guess is my scenario is at least in the mix of options for 2009. We shall see...
Chad Johnson finally had his ankle surgery today. It went well. But surgery just five weeks before the start of training camp? It's far too late, so says our friend Chick Ludwig of the Dayton Daily News in his recent "Ludwig At Large" post.
Who knew? Tiger Woods has played the last year with a torn ACL. Now, as he announced on his web site today, he's gone for the rest of this season.
And you've got to love the Bengals refereces in this piece by espn.com's Gene Wojciechowski on the Tiger-Rocco playoff. Will the Bengals ever be able to climb out from under the garbage they've buried themselves under?
Speaking of our men in stripes, 2008 first round draft pick, Keith Rivers, has a rookie diary that he's posting on foxsports.com. They're picking up his blog and reposting it....which, I guess is what I'm doing here.
One of the funniest post game interviews after the Celtics beat the Lakers in game 6 last night, turned in by the Celts' Brian Scalabrine. Check this out.
I'll see you tonight at 6 & 11p only on Cincinnati's Channel 5 WLWT!
Sunday, June 15, 2008
Good Morning!
I was thinking about this, as I was driving in from Columbus. I’ve been out of town the past couple of days. Our daughter graduated Saturday from our alma mater, Ohio University and with family in from all over the country, we were using Columbus as a base…largely because hotel rooms in Athens that go for about 35-bucks a night were 150-a night with a three night minimum. Believe this if nothing else, unless you’re attending OU, there’s absolutely no reason on earth to spend three days at 150-per in Athens. But, that’s a whole nother story.
I was thinking that every so often, we get to see the good and the bad in sports all in one week. And we got that this week. We are witnessing the things that drive us to games and things that drive us away from them.
We saw Junior reach another milestone this week. 600 of anything in sports is a monumental accomplishment. But when you’re talking about the quintessential play in baseball, the home run, 600 is amazing. I was listening Saturday, driving from Columbus to Athens on one of the channels XM radio has, an all baseball channel. And they were playing a one hour special that XM had pieced together about Ken Griffey, Junior’s career. It had all the high notes, the home runs, the great catches, scoring the winning run against the Yankees in the 1995 playoffs. And it occurred to me that one of the reasons you have trouble embracing Junior is because we never got his best here. His best was when he was in Seattle, when he was young and healthy. And while the promise was great when he arrived back in Cincinnati, remember he was not 30 and still considered one of the 25 greatest players all time in baseball, injury would rob him of his greatness. If you add the numbers up, it’s staggering: Junior has missed the equivalent of three full seasons here in Cincinnati because of injuries. And because of that, some fans around here became frustrated and took that frustration out on Griffey, either by booing him at games, railing on him on radio stations like this one or simply not going to see games.
But yet, his body of work in baseball is unrivaled, certainly by contemporary comparison. Bonds and Sosa hit more home runs. But they played at least under a cloud of suspicion of HGH use. Junior? You ever hear anything about him away from the field? Anything?
We’re witnessing this weekend, what could be one of the most remarkable accomplishments in the game of golf. I watched a little bit of the US Open on Saturday. If I’m not mistaken, Tiger Woods has taken the lead on one leg. If I’m not mistaken, Woods at one point Saturday, was using his three wood as a cane, walking up a fairway. Wincing on most of his shots, Woods is taking on the greatest golfers in the world right now and winning a race on one leg. It is compelling television, the kind of stuff that will live forever on places like ESPN Classic, if he wins this thing. It’ll be right up there with Willis Reed leading the Knicks past the Lakers dragging a leg behind him and Kirk Gibson limping around the bases after a game ending home run in the 1988 world series.
Last night, 74-thousand racing fans had the Kentucky Speedway bursting at the bolts that hold that facility today. If I’m not mistaken, it was the largest crowd ever to witness an event at that facility. And if so, it would be the largest crowd ever to witness a sporting event in the Tri-State. Maybe it was a farewell and thanks to the money and brains behind the place, Jerry Carroll. Maybe it was a show of force to the new guy who bought the track and NASCAR that has constantly turned its back on the facility. Or, maybe, it was just another indication that the Tri-State is one of the best sports areas in the world. All I know is this, the population of Gallatin County doubled for about five hours Saturday. People drove from Cincinnati, Louisville, Dayton, sat in traffic got there early and left late and by all indications had a blast.
Those were the things that happened this week that told us all again why we get interested in athletes, storylines and games.
And then, we got to see the under belly.
The NBA has a major problem. It could be a cataclysmic problem, if a former referee is telling the truth about game fixing. The NBA has shouted down Tim Donaghty. But shouting won’t win any battle in federal court. And as Donaghty awaits sentencing, he may only have to prove, softly, that one or two of his former compadres were complicit in game fixing. And if you have that, you have a conspiracy that goes right to the heart of the NBA’s credibility. And if that happens, professional basketball will become nothing more than Vince McMahon’s WWE in shorts.
And then, we witnessed the entire Chad Johnson soap opera this week. As I like to say, with the Bengals, you never just get football. There is always drama. Always.
I feel used today. Every journalist in this town should feel used, Channels 5, 9, 12 and 19, the Enquirer, this radio station, Homer, pick one. We were used this week by Johnson and his mouthpiece (he’s not talking to anyone locally you know, not since Halloween, ironically)….Johnson and his agent, Drew Rosenhaus used us. They wanted to create a circus atmosphere, get it caught on tape and in print and then wave it under Mike Brown’s nose. Because if there’s one thing Mike Brown doesn’t like, other than getting beaten in a contract negotiation, it’s a circus involving his team.
Maybe, after the past four years, he should be used to it.
Johnson showed up, avoided the $8 thousand dollar fine. He didn’t practice at first. It was an ankle, a back it could have been both. The accusations flew: the team said he reported no problem with either during his routine physical, Rosenhaus said he had documents that the team wanted Johnson to have surgery on the ankle, the team said Johnson refused. All of that played out over the course of minutes, culminated with an arm and arm walking and talking picture of Rosenhaus and Johnson leaving the practice field.
That’s why Rosenhaus came to town. That’s what he and Johnson wanted. That’s why every journalist who covered that fiasco should feel a little dirty today.
We in the media lapped it up. Our bosses told us to get the story, get the picture and get it on the air. Because, we were told, that’s what you want. But do you? Was it that big a deal?
The good with the bad. It doesn’t often happen to the extent it did this week.
I was thinking about this, as I was driving in from Columbus. I’ve been out of town the past couple of days. Our daughter graduated Saturday from our alma mater, Ohio University and with family in from all over the country, we were using Columbus as a base…largely because hotel rooms in Athens that go for about 35-bucks a night were 150-a night with a three night minimum. Believe this if nothing else, unless you’re attending OU, there’s absolutely no reason on earth to spend three days at 150-per in Athens. But, that’s a whole nother story.
I was thinking that every so often, we get to see the good and the bad in sports all in one week. And we got that this week. We are witnessing the things that drive us to games and things that drive us away from them.
We saw Junior reach another milestone this week. 600 of anything in sports is a monumental accomplishment. But when you’re talking about the quintessential play in baseball, the home run, 600 is amazing. I was listening Saturday, driving from Columbus to Athens on one of the channels XM radio has, an all baseball channel. And they were playing a one hour special that XM had pieced together about Ken Griffey, Junior’s career. It had all the high notes, the home runs, the great catches, scoring the winning run against the Yankees in the 1995 playoffs. And it occurred to me that one of the reasons you have trouble embracing Junior is because we never got his best here. His best was when he was in Seattle, when he was young and healthy. And while the promise was great when he arrived back in Cincinnati, remember he was not 30 and still considered one of the 25 greatest players all time in baseball, injury would rob him of his greatness. If you add the numbers up, it’s staggering: Junior has missed the equivalent of three full seasons here in Cincinnati because of injuries. And because of that, some fans around here became frustrated and took that frustration out on Griffey, either by booing him at games, railing on him on radio stations like this one or simply not going to see games.
But yet, his body of work in baseball is unrivaled, certainly by contemporary comparison. Bonds and Sosa hit more home runs. But they played at least under a cloud of suspicion of HGH use. Junior? You ever hear anything about him away from the field? Anything?
We’re witnessing this weekend, what could be one of the most remarkable accomplishments in the game of golf. I watched a little bit of the US Open on Saturday. If I’m not mistaken, Tiger Woods has taken the lead on one leg. If I’m not mistaken, Woods at one point Saturday, was using his three wood as a cane, walking up a fairway. Wincing on most of his shots, Woods is taking on the greatest golfers in the world right now and winning a race on one leg. It is compelling television, the kind of stuff that will live forever on places like ESPN Classic, if he wins this thing. It’ll be right up there with Willis Reed leading the Knicks past the Lakers dragging a leg behind him and Kirk Gibson limping around the bases after a game ending home run in the 1988 world series.
Last night, 74-thousand racing fans had the Kentucky Speedway bursting at the bolts that hold that facility today. If I’m not mistaken, it was the largest crowd ever to witness an event at that facility. And if so, it would be the largest crowd ever to witness a sporting event in the Tri-State. Maybe it was a farewell and thanks to the money and brains behind the place, Jerry Carroll. Maybe it was a show of force to the new guy who bought the track and NASCAR that has constantly turned its back on the facility. Or, maybe, it was just another indication that the Tri-State is one of the best sports areas in the world. All I know is this, the population of Gallatin County doubled for about five hours Saturday. People drove from Cincinnati, Louisville, Dayton, sat in traffic got there early and left late and by all indications had a blast.
Those were the things that happened this week that told us all again why we get interested in athletes, storylines and games.
And then, we got to see the under belly.
The NBA has a major problem. It could be a cataclysmic problem, if a former referee is telling the truth about game fixing. The NBA has shouted down Tim Donaghty. But shouting won’t win any battle in federal court. And as Donaghty awaits sentencing, he may only have to prove, softly, that one or two of his former compadres were complicit in game fixing. And if you have that, you have a conspiracy that goes right to the heart of the NBA’s credibility. And if that happens, professional basketball will become nothing more than Vince McMahon’s WWE in shorts.
And then, we witnessed the entire Chad Johnson soap opera this week. As I like to say, with the Bengals, you never just get football. There is always drama. Always.
I feel used today. Every journalist in this town should feel used, Channels 5, 9, 12 and 19, the Enquirer, this radio station, Homer, pick one. We were used this week by Johnson and his mouthpiece (he’s not talking to anyone locally you know, not since Halloween, ironically)….Johnson and his agent, Drew Rosenhaus used us. They wanted to create a circus atmosphere, get it caught on tape and in print and then wave it under Mike Brown’s nose. Because if there’s one thing Mike Brown doesn’t like, other than getting beaten in a contract negotiation, it’s a circus involving his team.
Maybe, after the past four years, he should be used to it.
Johnson showed up, avoided the $8 thousand dollar fine. He didn’t practice at first. It was an ankle, a back it could have been both. The accusations flew: the team said he reported no problem with either during his routine physical, Rosenhaus said he had documents that the team wanted Johnson to have surgery on the ankle, the team said Johnson refused. All of that played out over the course of minutes, culminated with an arm and arm walking and talking picture of Rosenhaus and Johnson leaving the practice field.
That’s why Rosenhaus came to town. That’s what he and Johnson wanted. That’s why every journalist who covered that fiasco should feel a little dirty today.
We in the media lapped it up. Our bosses told us to get the story, get the picture and get it on the air. Because, we were told, that’s what you want. But do you? Was it that big a deal?
The good with the bad. It doesn’t often happen to the extent it did this week.
Thursday, June 12, 2008
You gotta loves these Bengals. They can't just play football. They always gotta give you something extra. Today, the start of the annual mini-camp, turned into the Ocho Cinco Show. Yep, Johnson showed up, avoided the $8,000 fine he would have had to pay if he skipped the camp and completely dominated the news cycle. Oh yeah, a willing media played right along.
Johnson was late to the practice field. Didn't participate in drills because, he told the medical staff, he had a bad back. Wait a minute said the team, you didn't say anything about that when you passed your physical this morning. The Bengals then issued a statement that Chad "refused to practice". Wait a minute, said his agent, Drew Rosenhaus, who flew to Cincinnati to preside over the circus, Chad had a bad ankle, a left over from last season, that the team wanted him to have surgery on. Well, yes, said the Bengals front office, we did but Chad refused to have that done. Each side said they had the documents to prove it.
Oh, by the way, the rest of the team went through two spirited drills in high heat and humidity.
Welcome to your 2008 Cincinnati Bengals.
Read all about it, in this offering from espn.com.
Of course, no one has a 'take' on things like our pal Chick Ludwig in his latest "Ludwig At Large".
Meantime, up in Buffalo, the Bills Marshawn Lynch has his own problems. Our pal Mike Florio from profootballtalk.com has more in this video
Meantime, the Reds finally beat the Cardinals tonight. Bronson Arroyo should have gotten the win, but had to leave in the 7th with an muscle cramp in his arm. Jeremy Affeldt took care of thing for Arroyo, giving up the lead to the Cardinals and ending Arroyo's chance for a win. The Reds came back with four in their half of the 7th. The Red Sox are in town this weekend. It's the first time that franchise has played a game in Cincinnati since the 1975 World Series.
Meantime, interesting 'take' on the Reds continuing problems at short stop by si.com's Gennaro Filice.
I'm off for the weekend. My daughter is graduating from my alma mater, Ohio University, and there's nothing better in life than watching your kids succeed. Wait a minute, yes there is: the end of tuition payments.
Talk to youthis Sunday morning on 700 WLW's Sunday Morning Sportstalk on 700wlw.com, XM Radio channel 173 or on the 50,000 watt flame thrower itself!
Johnson was late to the practice field. Didn't participate in drills because, he told the medical staff, he had a bad back. Wait a minute said the team, you didn't say anything about that when you passed your physical this morning. The Bengals then issued a statement that Chad "refused to practice". Wait a minute, said his agent, Drew Rosenhaus, who flew to Cincinnati to preside over the circus, Chad had a bad ankle, a left over from last season, that the team wanted him to have surgery on. Well, yes, said the Bengals front office, we did but Chad refused to have that done. Each side said they had the documents to prove it.
Oh, by the way, the rest of the team went through two spirited drills in high heat and humidity.
Welcome to your 2008 Cincinnati Bengals.
Read all about it, in this offering from espn.com.
Of course, no one has a 'take' on things like our pal Chick Ludwig in his latest "Ludwig At Large".
Meantime, up in Buffalo, the Bills Marshawn Lynch has his own problems. Our pal Mike Florio from profootballtalk.com has more in this video
Meantime, the Reds finally beat the Cardinals tonight. Bronson Arroyo should have gotten the win, but had to leave in the 7th with an muscle cramp in his arm. Jeremy Affeldt took care of thing for Arroyo, giving up the lead to the Cardinals and ending Arroyo's chance for a win. The Reds came back with four in their half of the 7th. The Red Sox are in town this weekend. It's the first time that franchise has played a game in Cincinnati since the 1975 World Series.
Meantime, interesting 'take' on the Reds continuing problems at short stop by si.com's Gennaro Filice.
I'm off for the weekend. My daughter is graduating from my alma mater, Ohio University, and there's nothing better in life than watching your kids succeed. Wait a minute, yes there is: the end of tuition payments.
Talk to youthis Sunday morning on 700 WLW's Sunday Morning Sportstalk on 700wlw.com, XM Radio channel 173 or on the 50,000 watt flame thrower itself!
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
Will he or won't he? Chad Johnson. Will he or won't he report for the start of the Bengals mandatory mini-camp Thursday? Johnson was adamant in the winter that he wanted to be traded and said he wasn't reporting to anythuing. Then, in ESPN The Msgazine this week, he said "I'm crazy, but I'm not stupid" and hinted he'd be here.
Here's an even better question: do you even care? I don't. Frankly, I don't care what any football player does in June, so long as it doesn't involve a criminal offense. Call me in late July when the real deal starts.
And in case you're fearing that Johnson may be traded, check out what Clark Judge writes this week in his cbssports.com column.
Maybe Chad could sit out the year and help Sam Wyche get elected to a council seat in his South Carolina district. SI.com has the story of Sam's primary win Tuesday night.
I like Scott Miller's take on Junior reaching 600 in his cbssports.com column.
The NBA has a major problem on its hands right now with its disgraced former referee Tim Donaghty on the verge of getting thrown in the federal pen. Donaghty is the referee who admitted to taking bribes to fix the outcome of games. He's now claiming other referees were in cahoots with him and that NBA playoff games were fixed. Jason Whitlock of the Kansas City Stars puts this whole thing into proper perspective, I think, in his column.
Right now, Donaghty is just a rogue ref. But if he gets only one more of his former compadres to come forward, you now have a conspiracy. And the NBA as we know it could cease to exist if tht happens.
Here's an even better question: do you even care? I don't. Frankly, I don't care what any football player does in June, so long as it doesn't involve a criminal offense. Call me in late July when the real deal starts.
And in case you're fearing that Johnson may be traded, check out what Clark Judge writes this week in his cbssports.com column.
Maybe Chad could sit out the year and help Sam Wyche get elected to a council seat in his South Carolina district. SI.com has the story of Sam's primary win Tuesday night.
Meantime, our pal Chick Ludwig has a great idea, if the Bengals are going to take a risk (no not on a reformed criminal). In 'Ludwig At Large' the Chickster is floating the idea of the Bengals buying a Bentley.
Junior has finally hit his 600th, but the controversy has nothing to do with him. It's all around the baseball and who caught it, or didn't. Check out this story in the Miami Herald.
I like Scott Miller's take on Junior reaching 600 in his cbssports.com column.
The NBA has a major problem on its hands right now with its disgraced former referee Tim Donaghty on the verge of getting thrown in the federal pen. Donaghty is the referee who admitted to taking bribes to fix the outcome of games. He's now claiming other referees were in cahoots with him and that NBA playoff games were fixed. Jason Whitlock of the Kansas City Stars puts this whole thing into proper perspective, I think, in his column.
Right now, Donaghty is just a rogue ref. But if he gets only one more of his former compadres to come forward, you now have a conspiracy. And the NBA as we know it could cease to exist if tht happens.
I'll see you with more tonight at 6 & 11p on Cincinnati's Channel5 WLWT!
Monday, June 09, 2008
Let me now raise the names of Dunn, Junior and Johnson.
It occurred to me this week that most of us in this town have a problem with at least one of the big three. Some of us, with issues, have problems with all three. What got me thinking about this, was the conspiracy theory that was floating around our town that the real reason why Junior was out of the starting line up three games our of four in Philadelphia, was that he really wanted to hit his 600th home run in Florida, where his family would be in attendance. The fact that he pinch hit in those three games, drew walks and swung away mightily and missed in the fourth game should be enough to debunk that theory. Mix in the fact that Junior has been nursing a sore knee for the last month and that it had really flamed up in the last week would be more evidence. So too should the knowledge that below the waste, Junior doesn’t have a body part that hasn’t been rebuilt at least twice.
And yet, there are people in our town that don’t buy it, don’t buy him and would sell him to any major league baseball team right now, Japan if they were interested. And you know who you are.
Adam Dunn has been consistent in his stats over the last four seasons. 40 home runs and 100 rbi. He’s on his way to the same kind of season this year. He plays, on the average, over 150 games per season. He rarely gets hurt. His defense isn’t the greatest. But statistics and a pair of eyeballs tell us that he’s playing better in the field this year that any. Yet I hear constantly, a lot on these Sundays, that Dunn isn’t worth the 14 million he’s making this season. Like it’s their money. Someone called in last weekend and suggested the Reds dump Dunn in this off season, let him walk, and pursue Pat Burrell, a potential free agent who could leave the Phillies.
Forgetting for a moment that the Phils are always in a dog fight with the Mets and Braves for the NL East division title and would be fools to let Burrell walk, why would the Reds play that game? If you look at the numbers, Dunn and Burrell are about as similar as hitters get. And if you look at the numbers, Dunn, at his age, compares favorably to Harmon Killebrew and Reggie Jackson, who just happen to be in the Baseball Hall of Fame. Dunn’s in no danger of getting to Cooperstown anytime soon. But at 28, to give up on that kind of talent is something that championship teams don’t do.
Chad Johnson is allegedly coming back to town this week to participate in the Bengals annual mini camp. He missed voluntary workouts because he’s in a snit with the Bengals front office. First, they didn’t have his back when some un named Bengals personnel were anonymously bad mouthing Chad to the media. Then it was because the Bengals didn’t get enough…quote here from Ocho No show…difference makers on defense in this off season. The hot rumor is that he’s broke, too many lawsuits, too big a traveling posse or he has a new agent that wants a new deal so the agent can get paid. That’s the trouble with things like this: in the absence of information, anything can be true.
I mention all of that, because there are people in this town, some who work on this radio station, who think the best thing for the Bengals to do is give Johnson what he wants and trade him to another team. Maybe not now, but certainly before the draft this past April.
No.
Like Junior who’s one of the 50 greatest baseball players of all time, like Dunn who gives you 40 and 100 every year, you don’t let a wide receiver who gives you 1400 yards a season take a hike.
All of this got me thinking this week about a topic I raised here back in the winter. It seems to me, in Cincinnati, we embrace the team, but are wary of the superstar, wary at best. In the bigger markets, LA, New York, Chicago, they manage to love both. In LA, it’s the Lakers and Kobe, New York it’s any franchise and pick a star. In Chicago, the Bulls and Mike, the Cubs and Zambrano. Here, it seems like we can’t wait to run the stars of our teams out of town.
Admit it, we were over Boomer long before he was dealt away to the Jets. Before Cory Dillon threatened to ‘flip burgers’ a lot of the fans around here were done with him. Junior and Dunn both could have slinked away in the night three years ago, and a boat load of fans would’ve been happy. I know, I here the calls, I get your emails. My guess is, another 7-9 season, and a lot of fans will be plenty happy to says adios to TJ and Rudi.
Maybe it’s not so surprising. Maybe it’s the fallout from neither the Reds nor the Bengals being legitimate contenders since 1990. My guess is, if the Lakers went 18 years without a title, Kobe would be getting rung up like Dunn, Junior and Johnson are around here. Maybe that’s the logical answer.
But don’t tell me the barometer you’re using is 1975 and the Big Red Machine, or the 1980 Bengals super bowl team. And please don’t tell me it’s the ‘dirty uniform syndrome’, that you know a player is hustling because his uniform is dirty. That was one player, at one time and there haven’t been a Pete Rose since..
If you’re going to run a player out of town, have a legitimate reason for it. But here’s a better idea. When you embrace the team, embrace the players who make up the team. You don’t have one, without the other,
It occurred to me this week that most of us in this town have a problem with at least one of the big three. Some of us, with issues, have problems with all three. What got me thinking about this, was the conspiracy theory that was floating around our town that the real reason why Junior was out of the starting line up three games our of four in Philadelphia, was that he really wanted to hit his 600th home run in Florida, where his family would be in attendance. The fact that he pinch hit in those three games, drew walks and swung away mightily and missed in the fourth game should be enough to debunk that theory. Mix in the fact that Junior has been nursing a sore knee for the last month and that it had really flamed up in the last week would be more evidence. So too should the knowledge that below the waste, Junior doesn’t have a body part that hasn’t been rebuilt at least twice.
And yet, there are people in our town that don’t buy it, don’t buy him and would sell him to any major league baseball team right now, Japan if they were interested. And you know who you are.
Adam Dunn has been consistent in his stats over the last four seasons. 40 home runs and 100 rbi. He’s on his way to the same kind of season this year. He plays, on the average, over 150 games per season. He rarely gets hurt. His defense isn’t the greatest. But statistics and a pair of eyeballs tell us that he’s playing better in the field this year that any. Yet I hear constantly, a lot on these Sundays, that Dunn isn’t worth the 14 million he’s making this season. Like it’s their money. Someone called in last weekend and suggested the Reds dump Dunn in this off season, let him walk, and pursue Pat Burrell, a potential free agent who could leave the Phillies.
Forgetting for a moment that the Phils are always in a dog fight with the Mets and Braves for the NL East division title and would be fools to let Burrell walk, why would the Reds play that game? If you look at the numbers, Dunn and Burrell are about as similar as hitters get. And if you look at the numbers, Dunn, at his age, compares favorably to Harmon Killebrew and Reggie Jackson, who just happen to be in the Baseball Hall of Fame. Dunn’s in no danger of getting to Cooperstown anytime soon. But at 28, to give up on that kind of talent is something that championship teams don’t do.
Chad Johnson is allegedly coming back to town this week to participate in the Bengals annual mini camp. He missed voluntary workouts because he’s in a snit with the Bengals front office. First, they didn’t have his back when some un named Bengals personnel were anonymously bad mouthing Chad to the media. Then it was because the Bengals didn’t get enough…quote here from Ocho No show…difference makers on defense in this off season. The hot rumor is that he’s broke, too many lawsuits, too big a traveling posse or he has a new agent that wants a new deal so the agent can get paid. That’s the trouble with things like this: in the absence of information, anything can be true.
I mention all of that, because there are people in this town, some who work on this radio station, who think the best thing for the Bengals to do is give Johnson what he wants and trade him to another team. Maybe not now, but certainly before the draft this past April.
No.
Like Junior who’s one of the 50 greatest baseball players of all time, like Dunn who gives you 40 and 100 every year, you don’t let a wide receiver who gives you 1400 yards a season take a hike.
All of this got me thinking this week about a topic I raised here back in the winter. It seems to me, in Cincinnati, we embrace the team, but are wary of the superstar, wary at best. In the bigger markets, LA, New York, Chicago, they manage to love both. In LA, it’s the Lakers and Kobe, New York it’s any franchise and pick a star. In Chicago, the Bulls and Mike, the Cubs and Zambrano. Here, it seems like we can’t wait to run the stars of our teams out of town.
Admit it, we were over Boomer long before he was dealt away to the Jets. Before Cory Dillon threatened to ‘flip burgers’ a lot of the fans around here were done with him. Junior and Dunn both could have slinked away in the night three years ago, and a boat load of fans would’ve been happy. I know, I here the calls, I get your emails. My guess is, another 7-9 season, and a lot of fans will be plenty happy to says adios to TJ and Rudi.
Maybe it’s not so surprising. Maybe it’s the fallout from neither the Reds nor the Bengals being legitimate contenders since 1990. My guess is, if the Lakers went 18 years without a title, Kobe would be getting rung up like Dunn, Junior and Johnson are around here. Maybe that’s the logical answer.
But don’t tell me the barometer you’re using is 1975 and the Big Red Machine, or the 1980 Bengals super bowl team. And please don’t tell me it’s the ‘dirty uniform syndrome’, that you know a player is hustling because his uniform is dirty. That was one player, at one time and there haven’t been a Pete Rose since..
If you’re going to run a player out of town, have a legitimate reason for it. But here’s a better idea. When you embrace the team, embrace the players who make up the team. You don’t have one, without the other,
Tuesday, June 03, 2008
Well, Chad Johnson says he'll probably be back in time for next week's Bengals mini-camp. I guess that's good news. Read all about it here, on espn.com.
Of course, like anything Chad does, it's all about money, as expertly laid out by espn.com's James Walker.
Johnson has zero leverage in this deal. There is no way Mike Brown is going to be bullied by any player with a contract that runs through 2011. Remember, Brown is the man who beat the IRS in tax court, twice. If I'm not mistaken, that's two times more than any other human being has beaten the IRS in anything. Johnson, reportedly, is strapped for cash. So he won't run the risk of getting fined some money for missing mini-camp and big money for skipping the real deal in Georgetown next month.
Ken Griffey, Jr. is out of the Reds line-up again tonight. He jokingly said he didn't want to hit home run #600 in Philly, because his family wouldn't be traveling there. He said, jokingly, he wanted to wait until the team got to Florida, later this week. Now, I'm not so sure he wasn't being serious.
But, they still love Junior in Seattle, as we read today in the Seattle Times.
More coming.....
Of course, like anything Chad does, it's all about money, as expertly laid out by espn.com's James Walker.
Johnson has zero leverage in this deal. There is no way Mike Brown is going to be bullied by any player with a contract that runs through 2011. Remember, Brown is the man who beat the IRS in tax court, twice. If I'm not mistaken, that's two times more than any other human being has beaten the IRS in anything. Johnson, reportedly, is strapped for cash. So he won't run the risk of getting fined some money for missing mini-camp and big money for skipping the real deal in Georgetown next month.
Ken Griffey, Jr. is out of the Reds line-up again tonight. He jokingly said he didn't want to hit home run #600 in Philly, because his family wouldn't be traveling there. He said, jokingly, he wanted to wait until the team got to Florida, later this week. Now, I'm not so sure he wasn't being serious.
But, they still love Junior in Seattle, as we read today in the Seattle Times.
More coming.....
Friday, May 30, 2008
As we cruise on into another weekend, we remain status quo. We know know neither if the Reds are alive and contending or slipping into the land of the also rans. They took two of three from the Pirates, but fell into their bad, old ways in the series finale. Aaron Harang was pitching on only three days rest. He was no Bronson Arroyo.
But let me ask you this: if the Reds declared Josh Fogg the starter for Saturday's game BEFORE the series finale against the Pirates. Why not start Fogg Thursday, allowing Harang to slide back to his normal start?
Jay Bruce arrived this week and Ken Griffey, Jr still needs two more home runs to reach 600. Are the two inter-twined? Danny Knobler from cbssports.com thinks they could be.
And then, there's this from Scott Miller from the same cbssports.com. Sounds like 600 means a heckuva lot more to his team mates and fans, than Griffey, Jr.
I won't be running onto the field at Fenway Park anytime soon, and you shouldnt either, after watching this video from the other night.
One of the best national football writers is Jarrett Bell, from USA Today. I got to know him, during my time in Washington, DC. Good writer, funny guy, good guy. Here's his take on the Bengals. Bell isn't predicting playoffs. But he says it's not out of the question.
Sunday night on Sports Rock, our guest, live from Las Vegas, will be Cincinnati Cyclones head caoch, Chuck Weber. The 'Clones, are we call them here in Cincinnati, are up 2-1 in their best of seven Kelly Cup final series. Game 4 is tonight. Former Bengal Eric Thomas and 1530 Homer's Mo Egger will be in as well.
Sunday morning, I'm talking sports, as always on 700 WLW. If you not within the coverage area of this 50K flame throwing, you can listen on line, at www.700wlw.com. If you have XM radio, we're on channel 173. My guests will include Hal McCoy and Chick Ludwig, both from the Dayton Daily News. I'm on from 9am-Noon EDT.
And for the best in sports, check out my web site: www.kenbroo.com.
Have a great weekend!
But let me ask you this: if the Reds declared Josh Fogg the starter for Saturday's game BEFORE the series finale against the Pirates. Why not start Fogg Thursday, allowing Harang to slide back to his normal start?
Jay Bruce arrived this week and Ken Griffey, Jr still needs two more home runs to reach 600. Are the two inter-twined? Danny Knobler from cbssports.com thinks they could be.
And then, there's this from Scott Miller from the same cbssports.com. Sounds like 600 means a heckuva lot more to his team mates and fans, than Griffey, Jr.
I won't be running onto the field at Fenway Park anytime soon, and you shouldnt either, after watching this video from the other night.
One of the best national football writers is Jarrett Bell, from USA Today. I got to know him, during my time in Washington, DC. Good writer, funny guy, good guy. Here's his take on the Bengals. Bell isn't predicting playoffs. But he says it's not out of the question.
Sunday night on Sports Rock, our guest, live from Las Vegas, will be Cincinnati Cyclones head caoch, Chuck Weber. The 'Clones, are we call them here in Cincinnati, are up 2-1 in their best of seven Kelly Cup final series. Game 4 is tonight. Former Bengal Eric Thomas and 1530 Homer's Mo Egger will be in as well.
Sunday morning, I'm talking sports, as always on 700 WLW. If you not within the coverage area of this 50K flame throwing, you can listen on line, at www.700wlw.com. If you have XM radio, we're on channel 173. My guests will include Hal McCoy and Chick Ludwig, both from the Dayton Daily News. I'm on from 9am-Noon EDT.
And for the best in sports, check out my web site: www.kenbroo.com.
Have a great weekend!
Thursday, May 29, 2008
As Cincinnati is gripped by 'playoff fever'.....OK, slight over-statement, but at least there's a baseball pulse again....how much can we divert our attention away from Chad Johnson? The mini camp showdown is now just two weeks away. Will Chad show? Will he skip the camp and take the fine? My thoughts on "No Show Cinco" in today's installment of "Ludwig At Large", courtesy of my good friend Chick Ludwig from the Dayton Daily News.
Meantime, back to the Reds. It may turn out, Wayne Krivsky will get the last laugh with Jim Bowden. Two years ago, Bowden fleeced the Reds and Krivsky by sending a sore-armed Gary Majewski to the Reds, along with Bill Bray, infielder Brendan Harris and short stop Royce Clayton, in exchange for outfielder Austin Kearns and infielder Felipe Lopez. Majewski and Bray have been hurt ever since, Harris was released as was Clayton. The fact that Lopez and Kearns have fizzled in DC has nothing to do with Majewski coming here under the pretense of being completely healthy. He wasn't, having had a cortisone shot to his pitching shoulder not a week before the trade went down. The Reds have filed a greivenace with the MLB Commissioner's office. But there was a 'throw-in' player the Reds got in this trade. Pitcher Daryl Thompson has now worked his way up to the Reds "AAA" club in Louisville. He was 'lights out' at "AA" Chattanooga. And here's the story of his "AAA" debut, courtesy of the Louisville Courier-Journal.
If Thompson stays this sharp, he could be in Cincinnati soon.
You think Cincinnati Mayor Mark Mallory's opening day first pitch in 2007 was bad? Take a look at diva Mariah Carey doing the honors in Japan.
Which calls to mind one of the worst throws anywhere, anytime. And no, Mallory doesn't have that honor. This guy does.
Sounds as though the recently departed Scott Hatterberg won't be out of work long. mlb.com reports there's interest in Hatteberg. Anything the Reds could get for him (he was DFA'd which means the Reds have 10 days to trade him or release him) would be a bonus. But it sounds as though the Mets may just wait out the 10 days.
Who's out there, if teams are looking for immediate help. Our old buddy, Jerry Cranick of espn.com (and looooong ago from the now defunct Cincinnati Post) say not much.
And finally, if your fantasy baseball team has taken a turn for the training room, here's some good advice from The Sporting News' expert, Brad Pinkerton.
And just posted on my web site: www.kenbroo.com is the latest "Broo View Podcast" It's on the front page. In the "Podcasts and More" section, you can download past episodes.
See you tonight at 6 & 11p on WLWT Cincinnati's Channel 5!
Meantime, back to the Reds. It may turn out, Wayne Krivsky will get the last laugh with Jim Bowden. Two years ago, Bowden fleeced the Reds and Krivsky by sending a sore-armed Gary Majewski to the Reds, along with Bill Bray, infielder Brendan Harris and short stop Royce Clayton, in exchange for outfielder Austin Kearns and infielder Felipe Lopez. Majewski and Bray have been hurt ever since, Harris was released as was Clayton. The fact that Lopez and Kearns have fizzled in DC has nothing to do with Majewski coming here under the pretense of being completely healthy. He wasn't, having had a cortisone shot to his pitching shoulder not a week before the trade went down. The Reds have filed a greivenace with the MLB Commissioner's office. But there was a 'throw-in' player the Reds got in this trade. Pitcher Daryl Thompson has now worked his way up to the Reds "AAA" club in Louisville. He was 'lights out' at "AA" Chattanooga. And here's the story of his "AAA" debut, courtesy of the Louisville Courier-Journal.
If Thompson stays this sharp, he could be in Cincinnati soon.
You think Cincinnati Mayor Mark Mallory's opening day first pitch in 2007 was bad? Take a look at diva Mariah Carey doing the honors in Japan.
Which calls to mind one of the worst throws anywhere, anytime. And no, Mallory doesn't have that honor. This guy does.
Sounds as though the recently departed Scott Hatterberg won't be out of work long. mlb.com reports there's interest in Hatteberg. Anything the Reds could get for him (he was DFA'd which means the Reds have 10 days to trade him or release him) would be a bonus. But it sounds as though the Mets may just wait out the 10 days.
Who's out there, if teams are looking for immediate help. Our old buddy, Jerry Cranick of espn.com (and looooong ago from the now defunct Cincinnati Post) say not much.
And finally, if your fantasy baseball team has taken a turn for the training room, here's some good advice from The Sporting News' expert, Brad Pinkerton.
And just posted on my web site: www.kenbroo.com is the latest "Broo View Podcast" It's on the front page. In the "Podcasts and More" section, you can download past episodes.
See you tonight at 6 & 11p on WLWT Cincinnati's Channel 5!
Tuesday, May 06, 2008
It's not a new story. Just fresh copy today in USA Today, in a story written by their national baseball writer, Bob Nightengale. Ken Griffey, Jr. is talking about the possibility of leaving the Cincinnati Reds. Junior has been singing this since spring training. He's a 10-5 guy (ten years in the league, five with the same team) so he can veto any trade. My gut tells me the Reds will look for a way to restructure his contract and avoid paying him the $16 million they owe him next season. Perhaps, they'll do a long term deal (three years) and allow him to retire as a Red. But everything is in play, when a team is under achieving. Even trading its hometown superstar.
For all you 'trade Chad now and get the draft picks' moaners (and you know who you are) comes this today from Marvin Lewis in a give and take with Peter King of SI.com.
Those who claim the Bengals will eventually trade Johnson do not know Mike Brown. Brown will trade Johnson ONLY when Brown wants to, and he doesn't remotely right now. History, people: it took Corey Dillon four years of whining to get out of Cincinnati and Carl Pickens five.
No way Chad gets out of town in four months. Remember, the Bengals can fie Johnson $14,000 per DAY for any time missed at mandatory events, such as training camps, practices and game days. Mike Brown will MAKE money, if Johnson elects to sit out.
Meantime, the Bengals pursuit of hometown hero, Shaun Alexander got a bit more complicated. NFL Network's web site says Alexander may have options.
And now, I can see, I've seen it all. I'll see you tonight, at 6 & 11p on WLWT Channel 5 in Cincinnati.
For all you 'trade Chad now and get the draft picks' moaners (and you know who you are) comes this today from Marvin Lewis in a give and take with Peter King of SI.com.
Those who claim the Bengals will eventually trade Johnson do not know Mike Brown. Brown will trade Johnson ONLY when Brown wants to, and he doesn't remotely right now. History, people: it took Corey Dillon four years of whining to get out of Cincinnati and Carl Pickens five.
No way Chad gets out of town in four months. Remember, the Bengals can fie Johnson $14,000 per DAY for any time missed at mandatory events, such as training camps, practices and game days. Mike Brown will MAKE money, if Johnson elects to sit out.
Meantime, the Bengals pursuit of hometown hero, Shaun Alexander got a bit more complicated. NFL Network's web site says Alexander may have options.
OK, here's the story. Mom wanted a day on her own, Dad takes kid to ballgame. Now, click the video below to see some great parenting.
I wasn't aware that Anheuser-Busch made baby formula.
You know, I lived through the 70's when 'streaking' was a big deal. At Ohio, it was almost a right of spring. You'd see streakers on Saturday nights all the time. It even happened once, at the Academy Awards, when David Niven was attempting to present a trophy. His 'shortcomings' joke is Oscar lore. I thought it'd died down. But apparently not at the World Pool Championship, where the contestants were 'snookered' shall we say. Take a look.
And now, I can see, I've seen it all. I'll see you tonight, at 6 & 11p on WLWT Channel 5 in Cincinnati.
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
Not for a moment, am I shocked that Wayne Krivsky got the 'boot' today. But I am shocked by the timing. You might have to look hard, long and deep to find a major league baseball team that has fired its general manager just 21 games in to a season. Jim Bowden's mid season firing in 2003 was out of the ordinary. Usually, most GM's are launched in the off season.
But the fact that Krivsky, a really engaging guy incidentally, was fired is not a shock. Walt Jocketty has been a "GM in waiting" since Bob Castellini hired him in January. In St. Louis, for 12 years, Jocketty was the consumate baseball general manager. Most of his trades involved sending promising minor league talent to other teams for established veterans. I don't think he'll do that here, not yet. But I wouldn't be surprised to see him place his hand print (foot print?) on the roster soon. He has some big decision to make, along with Castellini.
The owner likes Adam Dunn. But does he like him enough to lay about $60 million on him for the next four years? Bringing back Ken Griffey, Junior at $16 million next season wasn't going to happen, regardless who the GM is. But will Jocketty want to renegotiate a longer deal in exchange for less money with Junior?
As for Krivsky, I hope he lands another GM job in his career. He made some bold moves here, and some that were doomed from the start. Getting hoodwinked by predecessor Jim Bowden on a trade for relief pitching in 2006 didn't help him. But on the whole, says espn.com's Rob Neyer, Krivsky did well.
And Richard Justice, an old acquaintace of mine from the "DC Days", thinks the move will pay off big for the Reds. Justice has this on sportingnews.com.
His immediate concern has to be the performance of Bronson Arroyo, who was lit up again Wednesday night. Arroyo hasn't made it out of the sixth inning in any of his starts. Last Friday, against the Brewers, it took him 100 pitches to make it through the fifth. Wednesday night, against the Astros, Arroyo lasted just two outs into the fourth, allowing ten hits and eight earned runs. And he needed 91-pitches to accompish that.
The NFL draft is Saturday. Another videocast below from our good friend, Mike Florio of profootballtalk.com. Today, Mike is scoping out the position the Bengals hope to cash in on in round one: defensive tackles.
If Sedrick Ellis is there at #9 when the Bengals pick, I don't see how they pass on him.
My man, Chick Ludlwig of the Dayton Daily News is on the same page as me. If you give in to Chad Johnson's antics, you're just asking for trouble down the road.
Check out my web site: www.kenbroo.com. I'll have another Broo View Podcast posted within the next 24 hours. But the latest installment is on the front page. And you can access any of the archived Broo View Podcast in the "Podcast & More" section.
But the fact that Krivsky, a really engaging guy incidentally, was fired is not a shock. Walt Jocketty has been a "GM in waiting" since Bob Castellini hired him in January. In St. Louis, for 12 years, Jocketty was the consumate baseball general manager. Most of his trades involved sending promising minor league talent to other teams for established veterans. I don't think he'll do that here, not yet. But I wouldn't be surprised to see him place his hand print (foot print?) on the roster soon. He has some big decision to make, along with Castellini.
The owner likes Adam Dunn. But does he like him enough to lay about $60 million on him for the next four years? Bringing back Ken Griffey, Junior at $16 million next season wasn't going to happen, regardless who the GM is. But will Jocketty want to renegotiate a longer deal in exchange for less money with Junior?
As for Krivsky, I hope he lands another GM job in his career. He made some bold moves here, and some that were doomed from the start. Getting hoodwinked by predecessor Jim Bowden on a trade for relief pitching in 2006 didn't help him. But on the whole, says espn.com's Rob Neyer, Krivsky did well.
And Richard Justice, an old acquaintace of mine from the "DC Days", thinks the move will pay off big for the Reds. Justice has this on sportingnews.com.
His immediate concern has to be the performance of Bronson Arroyo, who was lit up again Wednesday night. Arroyo hasn't made it out of the sixth inning in any of his starts. Last Friday, against the Brewers, it took him 100 pitches to make it through the fifth. Wednesday night, against the Astros, Arroyo lasted just two outs into the fourth, allowing ten hits and eight earned runs. And he needed 91-pitches to accompish that.
The NFL draft is Saturday. Another videocast below from our good friend, Mike Florio of profootballtalk.com. Today, Mike is scoping out the position the Bengals hope to cash in on in round one: defensive tackles.
If Sedrick Ellis is there at #9 when the Bengals pick, I don't see how they pass on him.
My man, Chick Ludlwig of the Dayton Daily News is on the same page as me. If you give in to Chad Johnson's antics, you're just asking for trouble down the road.
Check out my web site: www.kenbroo.com. I'll have another Broo View Podcast posted within the next 24 hours. But the latest installment is on the front page. And you can access any of the archived Broo View Podcast in the "Podcast & More" section.
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
You wonder why Marvin Lewis doesn't trust the media. He worked for Brian Billick and Bill Cowher, two head coaches who have a solid working relationship with the media in their towns. Lewis, apparently, didn't go to the same school.
We got another example of that today, when Lewis gathered the media to talk about the upcoming draft. But he had to know that questions were coming about Chad Johnson's status with the Bengals. Johnson, I'm sure you know, has been yapping since January that he wants out of Cincinnati. For whatever reason, he feels he's been mistreated. At least three times since the end of this season, Lewis has said, flatly, that Johnson wouldn't be traded and that he expected Chad to honor the terms of his contract, which runs through the 2011 season.
But Tuesday, ESPN's Chris Mortenson reported that the Washington Redskins had offered the Bengals their #1 pick in Saturday's draft and a conditional third round pick in 2009, that could become a first rounder, depending on how Johnson would perform this season.
At his news conference, Lewis was asked by a reporter if the Redskins had offered the Bengals two first round picks, in exchange for Johnson, a technical misquote as the trade offer was for a first rounder and third rounder that could become a first. Lewis said that Mortenson's reporting was 'errant' and then said that Mike Brown, the Bengals owner, hasn't entertained any trade offers for Johnson. And, by the way Marvin said, Johnson isn't available.
Later in the day, Marvin had to eat his words and apologize to Mortenson, whose report was confirmed in the DC media. Lewis has taken on some water for this, his credibility with the local media remains shaky.
But lost in that is this: Mike Brown will not trade Johnson until Brown wants to. If it took three years of moaning and complaining by Corey Dillon, it'll take at least that by Johnson. Brown is a man of principle. A deal is a deal, with Mike. Besides, this Bengals team needs Johnson performing at his peak to have any chance of making the playoffs this season. The other memorable quote from Lewis today was that if Chad doesn't want to play for the Bengals then he should retire. "He has a contract through 2011. He's stated without an opportunity to go to a different team and a new contract, he wasn't going to play. I think he's a man of his word and says not going to play, so don't play."
Don't be surprised if the whole thing wasn't leaked by Johnson's agent, Drew Rosenhaus. Reportedly, the Redskins were set to offer Chad a new contract with $21 million in bonus money.
But, also, don't be surprised by this: Mike Brown doesn't have a history of caving into anyone. Don't look for Johnson to go anywhere, soon.
My buddy, Mike Florio, of profootballtalk.com is talking about offensive linemen in his weekly video podcast. Check it out.
Now, if the Bengals believe that Rudi Johnson is finished and that last year's second round pick, Kenny Irons isn't fully recovered from his knee surgery, they have an option. The Seattle Seahawks have released veteran running back, Shaun Alexander. And Alexander calls greater Cincinnati home. He was a big time high school running back at Boone County HS, where he rushed for over 100 touchdowns in his career.
I'm talking sports again this Sunday on Cincinnati's 50,000 flame thrower, 700 WLW. I'm on from 9am-Noon AND we have a toll free number, if you want to talk sports.
Sunday night at 11:35pm on Cincinnati's NBC affiliate, WLWT, it's the last best word on the NFL draft and the rest of the week in sports. Join us for Sports Rock!
And you can check out my web site: www.kenbroo.com. The latest edition of the Broo View Podcast is ready for download!
We got another example of that today, when Lewis gathered the media to talk about the upcoming draft. But he had to know that questions were coming about Chad Johnson's status with the Bengals. Johnson, I'm sure you know, has been yapping since January that he wants out of Cincinnati. For whatever reason, he feels he's been mistreated. At least three times since the end of this season, Lewis has said, flatly, that Johnson wouldn't be traded and that he expected Chad to honor the terms of his contract, which runs through the 2011 season.
But Tuesday, ESPN's Chris Mortenson reported that the Washington Redskins had offered the Bengals their #1 pick in Saturday's draft and a conditional third round pick in 2009, that could become a first rounder, depending on how Johnson would perform this season.
At his news conference, Lewis was asked by a reporter if the Redskins had offered the Bengals two first round picks, in exchange for Johnson, a technical misquote as the trade offer was for a first rounder and third rounder that could become a first. Lewis said that Mortenson's reporting was 'errant' and then said that Mike Brown, the Bengals owner, hasn't entertained any trade offers for Johnson. And, by the way Marvin said, Johnson isn't available.
Later in the day, Marvin had to eat his words and apologize to Mortenson, whose report was confirmed in the DC media. Lewis has taken on some water for this, his credibility with the local media remains shaky.
But lost in that is this: Mike Brown will not trade Johnson until Brown wants to. If it took three years of moaning and complaining by Corey Dillon, it'll take at least that by Johnson. Brown is a man of principle. A deal is a deal, with Mike. Besides, this Bengals team needs Johnson performing at his peak to have any chance of making the playoffs this season. The other memorable quote from Lewis today was that if Chad doesn't want to play for the Bengals then he should retire. "He has a contract through 2011. He's stated without an opportunity to go to a different team and a new contract, he wasn't going to play. I think he's a man of his word and says not going to play, so don't play."
Don't be surprised if the whole thing wasn't leaked by Johnson's agent, Drew Rosenhaus. Reportedly, the Redskins were set to offer Chad a new contract with $21 million in bonus money.
But, also, don't be surprised by this: Mike Brown doesn't have a history of caving into anyone. Don't look for Johnson to go anywhere, soon.
My buddy, Mike Florio, of profootballtalk.com is talking about offensive linemen in his weekly video podcast. Check it out.
Now, if the Bengals believe that Rudi Johnson is finished and that last year's second round pick, Kenny Irons isn't fully recovered from his knee surgery, they have an option. The Seattle Seahawks have released veteran running back, Shaun Alexander. And Alexander calls greater Cincinnati home. He was a big time high school running back at Boone County HS, where he rushed for over 100 touchdowns in his career.
I'm talking sports again this Sunday on Cincinnati's 50,000 flame thrower, 700 WLW. I'm on from 9am-Noon AND we have a toll free number, if you want to talk sports.
Sunday night at 11:35pm on Cincinnati's NBC affiliate, WLWT, it's the last best word on the NFL draft and the rest of the week in sports. Join us for Sports Rock!
And you can check out my web site: www.kenbroo.com. The latest edition of the Broo View Podcast is ready for download!
Monday, April 21, 2008
He's baaack! Late Monday, NFL Commissioner, Roger Goodell, re-instated Bengals linebacker, Odell Thurman. Thurman burst onto the NFL scene as a rookie in 2005. But soon, he fell into the wrong crowd and accumulated a series of arrests. Banned from the league the past two seasons, Thurman is now eligible to practice with and play for the Bengals. Read all about it, right here on espn.com.
No telling what kind of impact Thurman will have. Two years away from the game is along time, by NFL standards. But I think for any player who plays a reactionary position, it's a little easier to return. Now, the big question is, can Thurman stay clean and sober.
Well, at least based on one night, the Reds need to do more than just tweak the roster. Up from the minors came infielder, Jerry Hairston, Jr, and pitcher Matt Belisle. Belisle got the start Monday night against the Dodgers, and again showed just how big the gap is between the Majors and AAA. Belisle had a number of good starts, rehabbing a sore arm. But the Dodgers made Belisle look like he was throwing batting practice. Hal McCoy has the inside scoop in his daily blog "The Real McCoy" on the Dayton Daily News web site.
Belisle's line: 4 ip (he got no one out in the 5th) 12 hits and seven runs, five earned. He'll get at least a couple more starts. But he looked suspiciously like the Belisle we've seen before in Cincinnati.
Marvin Lewis holds his annual pre draft news conference Tuesday. I'm sure he'll be peppered with Chad Johnson questions. Lewis has said on three different occasions the Bengals will 'not' trade Johnson. If he says the same thing Tuesday, I'm convinced the Bengals will force Johnson's hand. If he elects to sit out part or all of the season, he will be heavily fined.
Check back later Tuesday for more. And my latest podcast will be posted over-night on my web site: www.kenbroo.com. The latest episode will be on the front page. In the "Podcasts & More" section, you can download all of the past episodes.
No telling what kind of impact Thurman will have. Two years away from the game is along time, by NFL standards. But I think for any player who plays a reactionary position, it's a little easier to return. Now, the big question is, can Thurman stay clean and sober.
Well, at least based on one night, the Reds need to do more than just tweak the roster. Up from the minors came infielder, Jerry Hairston, Jr, and pitcher Matt Belisle. Belisle got the start Monday night against the Dodgers, and again showed just how big the gap is between the Majors and AAA. Belisle had a number of good starts, rehabbing a sore arm. But the Dodgers made Belisle look like he was throwing batting practice. Hal McCoy has the inside scoop in his daily blog "The Real McCoy" on the Dayton Daily News web site.
Belisle's line: 4 ip (he got no one out in the 5th) 12 hits and seven runs, five earned. He'll get at least a couple more starts. But he looked suspiciously like the Belisle we've seen before in Cincinnati.
Marvin Lewis holds his annual pre draft news conference Tuesday. I'm sure he'll be peppered with Chad Johnson questions. Lewis has said on three different occasions the Bengals will 'not' trade Johnson. If he says the same thing Tuesday, I'm convinced the Bengals will force Johnson's hand. If he elects to sit out part or all of the season, he will be heavily fined.
Check back later Tuesday for more. And my latest podcast will be posted over-night on my web site: www.kenbroo.com. The latest episode will be on the front page. In the "Podcasts & More" section, you can download all of the past episodes.
Sunday, April 20, 2008
If there’s one person who’s keeping the Reds off the hot burner today, it’s you know who. Corey Patterson, Adam Dunn, and Scott Hatteberg should drop down on the Mendoza Line they stand on and give thanks today for Ocho Cinco. Without him, they’d have you speed dialing this morning.
Chad Johnson has gone from being the most loveable player on the Bengals roster to just another modern day athlete, spoiled rotten by money, attention and a media willing to lap up whatever drips out of his mouth. He has followed the gospel according to “TO” like it was written by Matthew, Mark, Luke or John. Only it wasn’t. It was written by one Drew Rosenhaus, agent for both.
I did the check list, the other night on channel 5. Step one, insult team management, the same people who made you one of the highest paid people on the planet. Step two, diss your coach. In TO’s case, it was Andy Reid, an old school indifferent sort, but a very good football coach. In Johnson’s case, it was one of the few people in that Bengals locker room who claims to understand him. A lot of people in the media, a lot of fans, are calling Marvin Lewis Johnson’s enablier, patting him on the back when Johnson really needed a swift kick to butt. If so, imagine how he feels today.
Step three, the most heinous of all, throw your quarterback under the bus. Last I checked, Donovan McNabb and Carson Palmer are pretty good quarterbacks. Last I checked, there hasn’t been a wide receiver in professional,,,,or any other kind of football… who’s managed to throw AND catch a forward pass. Like “TO” before him, Johnson this week attacked the sacred cow. Eventually, the Eagles had enough of Terrell Owens, suspended him, benched him and then eventually let his ‘walk’. Owens, if you’re scoring at home, is now in Dallas with a better team and still pulling in millions.
So it didn’t take a genius to figure out, this is exactly Chad Johnson’s end game: follow the TO blue print, insult enough people, get the Bengals to tire of your act and release you….or trade you.
There have been fans, talk show host, journalists, good people this week, who have said…enough…let him go, he’s a distraction and will be an even bigger one if this is allowed to continue. There have been people who believe it will be best for the Bengals to simply trade Johnson and be done with the head ache. But I know one person who isn’t saying this and it will be a long time before he will: Mike Brown.
I don’t know Brown as well as I did back in the ‘90’s, when I called Bengals games on radio and spent just about every practice day with him on the sidelines. But a leopard doesn’t change his spots and Mike Brown doesn’t do anything unless it benefits his team.
Brown has been skewered, on this radio station among other places, more than shish-ka-bob in the summertime. He’s cheap, doesn’t know how to draft players, hates to play the free agent game, wouldn’t know how fast a player was, even the player stepped on Mike’s neck enroute to a 4.4 40. You can believe all of that to be true….and incidentally, I don’t…but even if you do, you must give him this: the man can conduct business.
Remember, this is the guy who beat the IRS in tax court….twice. That’s like the Washington Generals beating the Harlem Globetrotters. This is the guy who twisted Hamilton County’s government so tightly, back in the 90’s, he made it look like it was their idea to fund a 500-million dollar stadium
So do you believe for a moment, some agent in a three piece suit and Chad Johnson are going to back Mike Brown into a corner and win? Really?
Here’s what I saw, when I watched Rosenhaus interviewed on ESPN Friday: a guy with a loose cannon for a client, up against an owner whose answer to him on everything is ‘no’. Rosenhaus didn’t say it, I wouldn’t have either if I were him, but that sounds exactly what Brown is telling him. Rosenhaus wants a trade, Brown says, no. Rosenhaus wants a new deal for Johnson, more money, more than the money they gave Johnson less than two years ago, Brown says no.
I think, down deep with a tinge of disgust, Brown is probably amused a little by all of this. The more Johnson opens his mouth, the more he embarrasses himself…and makes Rosenhaus squirm. See, Brown knows, he’s got Johnson locked down through 2010, with an option Brown holds through 2011. If Chad elects to sit out this season, he not only can be fined for every day he misses, starting with training camp, the deal automatically renews for 2011,
If Chad holds out, Brown actually MAKES money. Does this sound like somebody in a bad spot?
We heard this week, well, if this continues and Chad eventually reports, he could become a distraction. Could. But the Bengals are supposed to be running the football more often this year. Marvin said so a couple of weeks ago. They just signed a tight end, who supposedly will have passes thrown to him…a novelty, I know for the Bengals. What happens if Chad comes back and this team is winning? What happens if its 4-0, 5-0, 6-0, when he decides to report.
I’ll tell you what it will be: a story for one day and then every one of us in the local media will be back to reporting on a team that might be on a championship run.
So no, Chad Johnson won’t be traded on draft day, unless it benefits the Bengals. Mike Brown won’t take the cap hit and he won’t let a player back him into a corner and win. And he’s smart enough to realize, the kind of talent Johnson brings to a football team doesn’t come rolling down the street often.
But if I were advising Mike Brown, and since I’m doing a radio talk show, I guess I am.,I’d tell him to pack a bag, pick up Marvin and drive to the airport. They should fly to Miami for a ‘sit down’ with Ocho Cinco and Drew Rosenhaus. And Brown should lay it all on the table. He should ask Johnson specifically, who did what to him and when. What’s the basis for his behavior the past three months.
I’d remind Chad that he gushed over the contact he signed back in 2006, the money, the front office, his desire to make the team a winner.
I’d remind him of the number of place he could be traded to that could nuke any shot he may have winning a championship, let alone having a decent pass thrown to him. Oakland, Tampa Bay, Kansas City come to mind.
I don’t think Brown will do any of that, but he should. I don’t think Johnson would take the meeting, but he should.
The real losers in this are you….who bleed orange and me, who has to talk about this stuff and not the NFL draft.
Check out my latest podcast at www.kenbroo.com. And check me out weeknights at 6 & 11pm on WLWT in Cincinnati.
Chad Johnson has gone from being the most loveable player on the Bengals roster to just another modern day athlete, spoiled rotten by money, attention and a media willing to lap up whatever drips out of his mouth. He has followed the gospel according to “TO” like it was written by Matthew, Mark, Luke or John. Only it wasn’t. It was written by one Drew Rosenhaus, agent for both.
I did the check list, the other night on channel 5. Step one, insult team management, the same people who made you one of the highest paid people on the planet. Step two, diss your coach. In TO’s case, it was Andy Reid, an old school indifferent sort, but a very good football coach. In Johnson’s case, it was one of the few people in that Bengals locker room who claims to understand him. A lot of people in the media, a lot of fans, are calling Marvin Lewis Johnson’s enablier, patting him on the back when Johnson really needed a swift kick to butt. If so, imagine how he feels today.
Step three, the most heinous of all, throw your quarterback under the bus. Last I checked, Donovan McNabb and Carson Palmer are pretty good quarterbacks. Last I checked, there hasn’t been a wide receiver in professional,,,,or any other kind of football… who’s managed to throw AND catch a forward pass. Like “TO” before him, Johnson this week attacked the sacred cow. Eventually, the Eagles had enough of Terrell Owens, suspended him, benched him and then eventually let his ‘walk’. Owens, if you’re scoring at home, is now in Dallas with a better team and still pulling in millions.
So it didn’t take a genius to figure out, this is exactly Chad Johnson’s end game: follow the TO blue print, insult enough people, get the Bengals to tire of your act and release you….or trade you.
There have been fans, talk show host, journalists, good people this week, who have said…enough…let him go, he’s a distraction and will be an even bigger one if this is allowed to continue. There have been people who believe it will be best for the Bengals to simply trade Johnson and be done with the head ache. But I know one person who isn’t saying this and it will be a long time before he will: Mike Brown.
I don’t know Brown as well as I did back in the ‘90’s, when I called Bengals games on radio and spent just about every practice day with him on the sidelines. But a leopard doesn’t change his spots and Mike Brown doesn’t do anything unless it benefits his team.
Brown has been skewered, on this radio station among other places, more than shish-ka-bob in the summertime. He’s cheap, doesn’t know how to draft players, hates to play the free agent game, wouldn’t know how fast a player was, even the player stepped on Mike’s neck enroute to a 4.4 40. You can believe all of that to be true….and incidentally, I don’t…but even if you do, you must give him this: the man can conduct business.
Remember, this is the guy who beat the IRS in tax court….twice. That’s like the Washington Generals beating the Harlem Globetrotters. This is the guy who twisted Hamilton County’s government so tightly, back in the 90’s, he made it look like it was their idea to fund a 500-million dollar stadium
So do you believe for a moment, some agent in a three piece suit and Chad Johnson are going to back Mike Brown into a corner and win? Really?
Here’s what I saw, when I watched Rosenhaus interviewed on ESPN Friday: a guy with a loose cannon for a client, up against an owner whose answer to him on everything is ‘no’. Rosenhaus didn’t say it, I wouldn’t have either if I were him, but that sounds exactly what Brown is telling him. Rosenhaus wants a trade, Brown says, no. Rosenhaus wants a new deal for Johnson, more money, more than the money they gave Johnson less than two years ago, Brown says no.
I think, down deep with a tinge of disgust, Brown is probably amused a little by all of this. The more Johnson opens his mouth, the more he embarrasses himself…and makes Rosenhaus squirm. See, Brown knows, he’s got Johnson locked down through 2010, with an option Brown holds through 2011. If Chad elects to sit out this season, he not only can be fined for every day he misses, starting with training camp, the deal automatically renews for 2011,
If Chad holds out, Brown actually MAKES money. Does this sound like somebody in a bad spot?
We heard this week, well, if this continues and Chad eventually reports, he could become a distraction. Could. But the Bengals are supposed to be running the football more often this year. Marvin said so a couple of weeks ago. They just signed a tight end, who supposedly will have passes thrown to him…a novelty, I know for the Bengals. What happens if Chad comes back and this team is winning? What happens if its 4-0, 5-0, 6-0, when he decides to report.
I’ll tell you what it will be: a story for one day and then every one of us in the local media will be back to reporting on a team that might be on a championship run.
So no, Chad Johnson won’t be traded on draft day, unless it benefits the Bengals. Mike Brown won’t take the cap hit and he won’t let a player back him into a corner and win. And he’s smart enough to realize, the kind of talent Johnson brings to a football team doesn’t come rolling down the street often.
But if I were advising Mike Brown, and since I’m doing a radio talk show, I guess I am.,I’d tell him to pack a bag, pick up Marvin and drive to the airport. They should fly to Miami for a ‘sit down’ with Ocho Cinco and Drew Rosenhaus. And Brown should lay it all on the table. He should ask Johnson specifically, who did what to him and when. What’s the basis for his behavior the past three months.
I’d remind Chad that he gushed over the contact he signed back in 2006, the money, the front office, his desire to make the team a winner.
I’d remind him of the number of place he could be traded to that could nuke any shot he may have winning a championship, let alone having a decent pass thrown to him. Oakland, Tampa Bay, Kansas City come to mind.
I don’t think Brown will do any of that, but he should. I don’t think Johnson would take the meeting, but he should.
The real losers in this are you….who bleed orange and me, who has to talk about this stuff and not the NFL draft.
Check out my latest podcast at www.kenbroo.com. And check me out weeknights at 6 & 11pm on WLWT in Cincinnati.
Thursday, April 17, 2008
Here's what I think is going on. Chad Johnson is following the same blueprint as Terrell Owens did when Owens wanted 'out' of Philly. Remember, they both have the same agent, Drew Rosenhaus. In 2005, Owens did the following: insult management, throw his quarterback 'under the bus', dissed the coach and got his release. What has Johnson done this winter and spring? The exact same things. You think this is a coincidence? Negative. This is a game the agent is running.
When Johnson refuted an innocent comment Carson Palmer made this week (Palmer said in a TV interview with WLWT that he talked with Chad and Johnson assured him he'd be in Cincinnati when 'he had to'. Johnson immediately called his quarterback a liar) it was the same path that Owens followed in 2005, when he trashed his quarterback, Donovan McNabb. In early 2006, the Eagles released him and Owens wound up signing with Dallas.
I don't sense Mike Brown is going to be bullied like his Eagles counterpart was three years ago. Brown does nothing unless it benefits his team. Letting Johnson go now, taking a $8 million salary cap hit and losing a wide receiver who consistently delivers over 1300 yards per season is something that will hurt the Bengals in 2008, not help. TJ Housmandzadeh will draw double teams. And the rest of the wide receivers on the roster, at least at this point, are nothing more than pedestrian. You must remember, it took Corey Dillon four years of moaning to get out of Cincinnati. Only then, did Brown let him walk, when Dillon was just about at the end of his career.
You don't push Mike Brown into a corner and win. Ask any player who's sat across the table from him on a contract negotiation. Ask the IRS. Brown has twice beaten the IRS in tax court. That has to be some sort of record.
Now we have TJ weighing on on this thing in a story posted on espn.com.
And if Palmer thinks he's got a problem with Johnson, wait until they read this story, from the Dayton Daily News, in Cleveland.
As always, I'm talking sports this Sunday morning on 700 WLW in Cincinnati. I'm on from 9am until Noon, EDT. You can listen on line at www.700wlw.com and on XM Radio channel 173.
Many guests, many topics and a lot on Chad Johnson and the plight of our Cincinnati Bengals!
When Johnson refuted an innocent comment Carson Palmer made this week (Palmer said in a TV interview with WLWT that he talked with Chad and Johnson assured him he'd be in Cincinnati when 'he had to'. Johnson immediately called his quarterback a liar) it was the same path that Owens followed in 2005, when he trashed his quarterback, Donovan McNabb. In early 2006, the Eagles released him and Owens wound up signing with Dallas.
I don't sense Mike Brown is going to be bullied like his Eagles counterpart was three years ago. Brown does nothing unless it benefits his team. Letting Johnson go now, taking a $8 million salary cap hit and losing a wide receiver who consistently delivers over 1300 yards per season is something that will hurt the Bengals in 2008, not help. TJ Housmandzadeh will draw double teams. And the rest of the wide receivers on the roster, at least at this point, are nothing more than pedestrian. You must remember, it took Corey Dillon four years of moaning to get out of Cincinnati. Only then, did Brown let him walk, when Dillon was just about at the end of his career.
You don't push Mike Brown into a corner and win. Ask any player who's sat across the table from him on a contract negotiation. Ask the IRS. Brown has twice beaten the IRS in tax court. That has to be some sort of record.
Now we have TJ weighing on on this thing in a story posted on espn.com.
And if Palmer thinks he's got a problem with Johnson, wait until they read this story, from the Dayton Daily News, in Cleveland.
As always, I'm talking sports this Sunday morning on 700 WLW in Cincinnati. I'm on from 9am until Noon, EDT. You can listen on line at www.700wlw.com and on XM Radio channel 173.
Many guests, many topics and a lot on Chad Johnson and the plight of our Cincinnati Bengals!
Tuesday, April 01, 2008
A child will test a parent. He will push a parent as far as he can, just to see how much he can get away with. Every parent knows this. And every kid knows it too. Chad Johnson is playing child these days to Marvin Lewis' parent. And Johnson has been testing his coach. His behavior on radio row during the Super Bowl and his rants since then on national stages have embarrassed his head coach.
Johnson has said, to anyone who'll listen, that he wants to be traded. He's threatened to sit out this season if the Bengals held onto him. The fact that he signed a five year deal just a couple of years ago for over $30 million is apparently insignificant to Johnson. He's not happy in Cincinnati. God knows why, as the fan base here will tolerate anything from the Bengals. Just look around Paul Brown Stadium any given Sunday and see the number 15 Chris Henry jerseys.
But the parent has grown tired of the child's antics. And today, at the NFL meetings in Florida, Marvin Lewis, very gently told the assembled media that Chad basically has two choices: play for the Bengals in 2008 and beyond, or retire. He can sit out the season too. But if Johnson chooses to do that, his contract will automatically extended an extra season, through 2012.
Lewis told bengals.com today "We've been dealing with this inside for over a year and we'll be prepared to move on. He has a contract through 2011. If he plays NFL football, it will be in Cincinnati, or he has to do what he says and that's retire. That would be a shame. We'll do everthing we can to help him out of this and try to restore his image."
For a coach who rarely scolds his players publicly, this spoke volumes. I'd have put it a different way. I'd have said "We've had one winning season with him, since he joined the team in 2001. We were, for the most part, a bad team with him. We can be a bad team without him."
But maybe that's why I didn't go into the coaching profession.
Chad Johnson just lost his safety net. Enjoy the fall.
Johnson has said, to anyone who'll listen, that he wants to be traded. He's threatened to sit out this season if the Bengals held onto him. The fact that he signed a five year deal just a couple of years ago for over $30 million is apparently insignificant to Johnson. He's not happy in Cincinnati. God knows why, as the fan base here will tolerate anything from the Bengals. Just look around Paul Brown Stadium any given Sunday and see the number 15 Chris Henry jerseys.
But the parent has grown tired of the child's antics. And today, at the NFL meetings in Florida, Marvin Lewis, very gently told the assembled media that Chad basically has two choices: play for the Bengals in 2008 and beyond, or retire. He can sit out the season too. But if Johnson chooses to do that, his contract will automatically extended an extra season, through 2012.
Lewis told bengals.com today "We've been dealing with this inside for over a year and we'll be prepared to move on. He has a contract through 2011. If he plays NFL football, it will be in Cincinnati, or he has to do what he says and that's retire. That would be a shame. We'll do everthing we can to help him out of this and try to restore his image."
For a coach who rarely scolds his players publicly, this spoke volumes. I'd have put it a different way. I'd have said "We've had one winning season with him, since he joined the team in 2001. We were, for the most part, a bad team with him. We can be a bad team without him."
But maybe that's why I didn't go into the coaching profession.
Chad Johnson just lost his safety net. Enjoy the fall.
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
It may be just days before the start of another baseball season. The NCAA Tournament is moving into the Sweet 16. But in Cincinnati, it's never an off season for "Chad". Another week brings another round of news on Ocho-No Show. Johnson, as he promised to do, failed to show up for the start of voluntary workouts this week. He's still mad at some un-named folks in the Bengals front office for some un-named slights directed at him during the 2007 season. Marvin Lewis re-iterated Monday in an NFL Network interview that the Bengals will not trade Johnson.
But Chad has kept the fires burning. Here's what he had to say in an ESPN interview this week.
And, of course, that just spurned all kinds of opinions on what the Bengals should do. The Sporting News says, salary cap be damned, the Bengals should trade Johnson immediately.
And if he is being shopped (again Lewis has said the team won't trade Johnson), the feeling from Philadephia is, send him there. A good take in the Philadelphia Daily News.
Meantime, check out this video. It's one of the best baseball plays I've seen this spring.
Anybody think that rookie Edison Volquoz has NOT nailed down a spot in the starting rotation? Here's his 'line' from today's start vs the Phillies in Clearwater, Florida: 5 innings, 5 hits, 1 run and 5 strikeouts. Aaron Harang, Bronson Arroyo, Johnny Cueto, Edinson Volquoz and Josh Fogg as the starting five? OK, I'll go with that. It's the best 'five' the Reds have had in years.
Xavier by eight over West Virginia Thursday and UCLA by 19 over Western Kentucky. But those are just my early 'lines'.
Check out my web site: www.kenbroo.com
But Chad has kept the fires burning. Here's what he had to say in an ESPN interview this week.
And, of course, that just spurned all kinds of opinions on what the Bengals should do. The Sporting News says, salary cap be damned, the Bengals should trade Johnson immediately.
And if he is being shopped (again Lewis has said the team won't trade Johnson), the feeling from Philadephia is, send him there. A good take in the Philadelphia Daily News.
Meantime, check out this video. It's one of the best baseball plays I've seen this spring.
Anybody think that rookie Edison Volquoz has NOT nailed down a spot in the starting rotation? Here's his 'line' from today's start vs the Phillies in Clearwater, Florida: 5 innings, 5 hits, 1 run and 5 strikeouts. Aaron Harang, Bronson Arroyo, Johnny Cueto, Edinson Volquoz and Josh Fogg as the starting five? OK, I'll go with that. It's the best 'five' the Reds have had in years.
Xavier by eight over West Virginia Thursday and UCLA by 19 over Western Kentucky. But those are just my early 'lines'.
Check out my web site: www.kenbroo.com
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
Good Morning! Let the games begin. For the record, Pitt, Kansas, UCLA and North Carolina are my final 4. I think Xavier moves on with a win over Georgia today. But I think Marquette KO's Kentucky.
Check out my latest Broo View Podcast. It's on the front page of my web site: www.kenbroo.com. You'll hear comments from Xavier players and coaches on their first round match up.
Chad Johnson is shooting his mouth off again. Now, he's saying he'll not only skip voluntary workouts, Johnson is also not committing to playing for the Bengals this season. Hmmmm, seems to me he's under contract in Cincinnati through 2011. And now, the NFL Network says Chad's running buddy, TJ Houshmandzadeh may sit out the workouts too! Check it out here.
Wonder how Marvin Lewis is going to handle all of this, when the voluntary workouts begin Monday. I'm sure his 'spin machine' will be working in over drive.
The Reds had their one and only off day of spring training Wednesday. When they reconvene, Dusty Baker and his staff will have some tough decisions to make. Homer Bailey, Matt Belisle and Josh Fogg are all in a foot race for the fifth and final spot in the rotation. Belisle may win by default, as Bailey, still a decent prospect despite his flat curve ball and shaky attitude, needs to pitch every fifth day. A fifth starter in major league baseball pitches infrequently in the early season.
The other big decision Baker has, is who's on first. Not the Abbott and Costello bit, but rather who starts at first. It appeared to be Joey Votto's job to lose as camp opened. It appears Votto has succeeded in losing it, with a poor hitting performance. Veteran Scott Hatteberg, thought to be a bat off the bench, looks to have regained the job he held the past two seasons. Hatteberg is sorching the ball. Like Bailey, Votto needs to play consistently and won't, sitting on the bench watching Hatteberg. Phenom centerfielder, Jay Bruce has just about punched his ticket to AAA. So it now appears that the three most promising prospects in the Reds system, all given chances to win jobs at the major league level, have failed to do so. Things could change in the final ten days of camp. I wouldn't bet on it.
Sunday, March 09, 2008
I was thinking about this yesterday while I was shoveling snow. And let me just say this before anything else, shoveling snow may be the most useless thing a grown man can do. The beauty of having kids is watching them do the menial tasks while you relax with a beer. I think its reason number three to have children, right up there with carrying on the family name and extending the love you and your spouse have. I really believe that when God said, ‘be fruitful and multiply’ that he knew that Cincinnati would be hit by the mother of all blizzards in March of 2008 and children would be needed to shovel snow. But I digress.
Here’s what I was thinking as I discovered my driveway again:
Maybe it wouldn’t be all that bad if Chad Johnson wasn’t a Cincinnati Bengal anymore. Maybe it wouldn’t be a bad idea to grant the man his apparent wish and trade him away. You’ll remember, of course, Chad’s radio row marathon at the Super Bowl, where he vacillated between cryptic and blunt just how under appreciated and how mistreated he’s been here in Cincinnati.
Now, we’ve been told Chad has calmed down in the last month. And Marvin Lewis is on record as saying the Bengals won’t trade Johnson. And even though I’m on the record, numerous times, as saying that the Bengals are much better with Johnson than without him….as I was shoveling white death, I had one of those revelations: why not trade the guy?
See, what triggered the thought was the video of Shaun Smith at some banquet the other night, up in Cleveland. If you remember Shaun Smith, you remember him for his mouth. Because the man talked a much better game than he played, at least around here. Smith left the Bengals last season in free agency and got the Browns to drop a whole lot of money on him, a whole lot more than his game deserved. At this banquet the other night, Smith was asked about what really happened in the Bengals locker room, at halftime in the one and only playoff game they’ve managed to qualify for since the current President’s father was our president.
You know the set up. Bengals and Steelers. First play from scrimmage for the Bengals, Carson Palmer goes down. In comes Jon Kitna, big heart, small hands, team heads for the locker room, its offense sputtering.
What happened next, has been more Bengals lore and rumor than actual fact. Nobody in the locker room, on the record at least, has said what happened. Not until the other night, when Shaun Smith confirmed that Chad Johnson, in a fit of anger over who really knows what, took a swing at and connected with Marvin Lewis’ eye. Then, according to Smith, took another swing and connected with then Bengals wide receivers coach Hue Jackson. Old Shaun had the Cleveland crowd’s attention now. And he certainly wasn’t misquoted. The entire thing was taped and on youtube within minutes. One of the biggest moments in Bengals lore, right up there with what really happened when Barry Foster quit after one day and why Gary Reasons tugged Dave Shula’s cap on national television…..one of the biggest moments confirmed.
Well, by the next morning, the youtube video was eradicated and Smith was back pedaling like a cornerback. But it got me thinking about how much the Bengals really need Johnson.
Let’s say they trade him. What do you figure they could get for Johnson? The conventional thinking is a second round draft pick. But what if they got a draft pick and a player? Shaun Rogers fetched the Lions a starting cornerback and a third round pick. You don’t think Chad Johnson would bring at least that? What if Johnson got the Bengals a starting tight end and a second round pick, or a starting defensive tackle and a draft pick?
Would you make the deal? Yesterday afternoon, I was ready to pull the trigger. Look, I like his game. His talent is not easily replaced. You don’t simply go to the wide receiver store and find a guy who can deliver 14-hundred and 40 yard season. And most of the time, the best deals are the ones you never make. But it may be time for a parting of the ways. The Carl Pickens divorce, the Corey Dillon divorce, those were nasty separations. This doesn’t have to be.
The timing isn’t right now. The big name free agent wide receivers are locked up, guys like Donte Stallworth and Randy Moss. But Justin McCareins is out there, so is David Patton and some other not so great but serviceable wide receivers. And if trading Johnson does bring a player plus a pick, who’s to say you can’t use that pick on a receiver?
The popping off on radio row, now the Shaun Smith confirmation of the locker room meltdown, maybe it’s time. Or maybe it was just a lack of oxygen to my brain as I shoveled away. But I do know this: the Bengals were mediocre the last couple of seasons with Chad Johnson. They can certainly be at least that without him.
Here’s what I was thinking as I discovered my driveway again:
Maybe it wouldn’t be all that bad if Chad Johnson wasn’t a Cincinnati Bengal anymore. Maybe it wouldn’t be a bad idea to grant the man his apparent wish and trade him away. You’ll remember, of course, Chad’s radio row marathon at the Super Bowl, where he vacillated between cryptic and blunt just how under appreciated and how mistreated he’s been here in Cincinnati.
Now, we’ve been told Chad has calmed down in the last month. And Marvin Lewis is on record as saying the Bengals won’t trade Johnson. And even though I’m on the record, numerous times, as saying that the Bengals are much better with Johnson than without him….as I was shoveling white death, I had one of those revelations: why not trade the guy?
See, what triggered the thought was the video of Shaun Smith at some banquet the other night, up in Cleveland. If you remember Shaun Smith, you remember him for his mouth. Because the man talked a much better game than he played, at least around here. Smith left the Bengals last season in free agency and got the Browns to drop a whole lot of money on him, a whole lot more than his game deserved. At this banquet the other night, Smith was asked about what really happened in the Bengals locker room, at halftime in the one and only playoff game they’ve managed to qualify for since the current President’s father was our president.
You know the set up. Bengals and Steelers. First play from scrimmage for the Bengals, Carson Palmer goes down. In comes Jon Kitna, big heart, small hands, team heads for the locker room, its offense sputtering.
What happened next, has been more Bengals lore and rumor than actual fact. Nobody in the locker room, on the record at least, has said what happened. Not until the other night, when Shaun Smith confirmed that Chad Johnson, in a fit of anger over who really knows what, took a swing at and connected with Marvin Lewis’ eye. Then, according to Smith, took another swing and connected with then Bengals wide receivers coach Hue Jackson. Old Shaun had the Cleveland crowd’s attention now. And he certainly wasn’t misquoted. The entire thing was taped and on youtube within minutes. One of the biggest moments in Bengals lore, right up there with what really happened when Barry Foster quit after one day and why Gary Reasons tugged Dave Shula’s cap on national television…..one of the biggest moments confirmed.
Well, by the next morning, the youtube video was eradicated and Smith was back pedaling like a cornerback. But it got me thinking about how much the Bengals really need Johnson.
Let’s say they trade him. What do you figure they could get for Johnson? The conventional thinking is a second round draft pick. But what if they got a draft pick and a player? Shaun Rogers fetched the Lions a starting cornerback and a third round pick. You don’t think Chad Johnson would bring at least that? What if Johnson got the Bengals a starting tight end and a second round pick, or a starting defensive tackle and a draft pick?
Would you make the deal? Yesterday afternoon, I was ready to pull the trigger. Look, I like his game. His talent is not easily replaced. You don’t simply go to the wide receiver store and find a guy who can deliver 14-hundred and 40 yard season. And most of the time, the best deals are the ones you never make. But it may be time for a parting of the ways. The Carl Pickens divorce, the Corey Dillon divorce, those were nasty separations. This doesn’t have to be.
The timing isn’t right now. The big name free agent wide receivers are locked up, guys like Donte Stallworth and Randy Moss. But Justin McCareins is out there, so is David Patton and some other not so great but serviceable wide receivers. And if trading Johnson does bring a player plus a pick, who’s to say you can’t use that pick on a receiver?
The popping off on radio row, now the Shaun Smith confirmation of the locker room meltdown, maybe it’s time. Or maybe it was just a lack of oxygen to my brain as I shoveled away. But I do know this: the Bengals were mediocre the last couple of seasons with Chad Johnson. They can certainly be at least that without him.
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