As the offseason progresses, Gang Green Nation will take a look at potential ways to improve the club. Today we will explore trading for Chad Ocho Cinco.
Profile: The Bengals selected Ocho Cinco in the second round of the 2001 NFL Draft after a standout career at Oregon State. His name was Chad Johnson at the time. After a relatively quiet rookie season, he started a string of six consecutive 1,000 receiving yard seasons. In five of the six, he went over 1,200. In four of the six, he was over 1,300. He had at least 87 receptions and 7 touchdowns in every year between 2003 and 2007 and became one of the league's biggest homerun threats. Johnson was just as known for his attention-grabbing antics from wacky touchdown celebrations to golden teeth to guaranteeing and delivering an upset of the then undefeated Chiefs in 2003. He legally changed his name to Chad Ocho Cinco in 2008 so that he could wear his jersey number 85 in Spanish on the back of his jersey (although the proper Spanish translation of eighty-five is ochenta y cinco). Ocho Cinco has made noise about wanting out of Cincinnati in recent seasons. He refused to have a rotator cuff injury repaired in the last season and has skipped voluntary workouts. He is also coming off the worst season of his career, a 53 reception, 540 yard campaign. This is partially the result of Ryan Fitzpatrick serving as the team's primary starting quarterback because of an injury to Carson Palmer.
Why It Makes Sense: He would fill the voids of homerun threat and number one receiver. This is the kind of guy around whom defenses must game plan. He would immediately excite the fan base. He also would have writers flocking to the Jets. Ocho Cinco would love New York and milk the attention playing in the nation's largest media market would bring. The media would love the idea of arguably the three biggest headline-grabbing wide receivers in the league, Randy Moss, Terrell Owens, and Ocho Cinco, playing in the same division.
Odds of Happening: The possibility of Ocho Cinco getting traded has been flying under the radar. Marvin Lewis has decided to do things his way, and he wants all of the distractions that have derailed an otherwise talented team through the years to end. This might end Ocho Cinco's time in Cincinnati before 2009 begins, especially after the missed workouts and the addition of Laveranues Coles. Coming off a bad season with the rotator cuff issue, he might come cheap enough to entice the Jets. Rex Ryan seems like he would have no issues bringing in interesting personalities. This is a possibility to tuck away in the back of your mind. I do not think Ocho Cinco intentionally tries to destroy teams like a Terrell Owens, but the Jets might be wise to stay away. It seems like self-promotion is more important to him than winning games, although the Bengals could make an offer the Jets cannot refuse.