Quote: (08-13-2012 11:25 PM)jerome Wrote:
http://www.examiner.com/article/chad-och...i-dolphins
Another american women costing her husband to lose his job and career.
I'm not here to defend the fact he headbutted her, but damn, how does a man lose his job due to his wife.
He starts by:
1. Aging (34) and subsequently performing poorly, instilling in league officials the fear that he may not have much left in the tank.
This is the most crucial factor, as it kept teams from investing much in Chad Johnson since they figured he may not have had much to give. That lack of investment made him easier to cut should he have done anything wrong.
His contract was for near the league minimum for a player his age (about $925,000). There were no guarantees in it (ex: no signing bonus), and it was incentive laden (just over $1 million in incentives).
Some agents call this a "prove it" contract, the type given to players who officials have reason to doubt can still perform or stay out of trouble (or both). For teams, this is about minimal investment in risky assets. The player can earn quite a bit if he does well thanks to the incentives, but the lack of guarantees (which the team would be on the hook for no matter how he does) gives the team an easy way out. They can cut the guy with no consequences for the slightest thing (ex: hitting your wife, getting arrested)-the guy is essentially on probation.
2. Being a generally controversial figure that can cause problems in the union between franchise and public. Domestic violence is something that tends to create PR issues, even if the woman in question (arguably a hoodrat with
anger management issues of her own) may have provoked it.
Teams may tolerate this from some players, but not when factor 1 is in play. That guy isn't worth the trouble in their eyes.
These two things conspired to put Chad Johnson on fairly thin ice, and usher him out of Miami early.
I am skeptical as to his chances of coming back into the league. He may want to talk to the UFL, which could give him a springboard back into the NFL by midseason. I do not think he has the time to jump into another NFL camp and stick at the moment.