Cincinnati Bengals Wide Receiver Chad Ochocino, formerly Chad Johnson was quoted Dec 16th, saying, “I would beat Shawne’s head in right now… This is not in fun. It’s personal, you know?” referencing defensive outside linebacker Shawn Merriman of the San Diego Chargers.
Three years ago the NFL amended the rules to include a 15-yard unsportmanslike conduct penalty against excessive celebrating after scoring a touch down, “Individual players are prohibited from using foreign objects or the football while celebrating. They are also prohibited from engaging in any celebrations while on the ground. A celebration shall be deemed excessive or prolonged if a player continues to celebrate after a warning from an official. Previously, players were not prohibited from using props or celebrating on the ground.”
The rule, in and of itself is open to interpretation and seems extreme, yet understandable if lewd sexual acts such as hip gyration or flipping off fans of the other team post-touchdown.
Just a few weeks ago, Oakland Raiders Cornerback Chris Johnson was flagged and given a 15-yard penalty for “praising God” during his celebration. The religious display sparked many online debates on the subject, especially from Christians (who argue that being humble is part of Christianity and according to American-Catholic.com “it’s his JOB to score touchdowns.”)
It’s clear the NFL wants to keep the sport a family affair, and maintain a positive sportsman like agenda for viewers. So how is it, that players, employed by the NFL family are able to make comments about other players without so much as a hand-slap, let alone a suspension.
Cincinnati Bengals Wide Receiver Chris Henry died (due to falling out of the back of a pick up truck) within a few days after Ochocinco’s slanderous remarks against Merriman. It seems he’s less than concerned with the well being of his teammate and the family of Henry and more interested in continuing the feud with the Chargers linebacker.
In the NFL, much like in many sports, respect for the ball (not grounding the ball after a bad call, flag or touchdown) as well as respect for other players is the norm. If Jack Nicholas made a comment about wanting to beat in Tiger Woods head “for personal reasons” the golf world would be outraged.
The debacle originally began (according to Ochocinco) in 2006 when he copied Merriman’s “Lights Out” sack dance (another questionable excessive form of celebrating, when Merriman sacks the quarterback). However, Merriman was on suspension for steroids in 2006. A twitter search will produce hundreds of results between fans and even a few between the players of topic.
Is it the responsibility of the NFL to maintain and regulate the opinions of players outside of the 4 quarters of the game? Many would argue that what players say and do in their off-time is their business, and ultimately it is up to the owners and coaches of the team to decide what retribution they take against their players. But most businesses do have some policies regarding behavior of their employees regardless of whether they are on the clock or not.
The Chargers host the Bengal tomorrow at 1:05 PST at Qualcomm Stadium, time will tell if Ochocinco is willing to chance a Lights Out against Merriman for an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty.
One thing is certain; a moment of silence will be heard throughout Mission Valley and the NFL network for Bengals WR Chris Henry.
