Hard Knocks & Ocho Cinco in the Cincy Spotlight

Have you ever noticed that NFL news just never seems to end? At the moment, all of the juicy stuff is coming out of Cincinnati as the Bengals are in the headlines once again. No, no, no... it has nothing to do with them drafting a player that there were "questions" about his good citizenship, intelligence, motivation, or behavior. Why would that be considered news? No, this news is GOOD news. The Cincinnati Bengals have been selected as the focus of HBO's Hard Knocks series where the public gets to see what goes on behind the scenes in a Bengal's Training Camp. This is exciting news people. We get to see the development of their first round draft pick, Andre Smith. Was it a mistake to select a player that struggled with the NFL Combine process? We get to see the comeback of their star quarterback, Carson Palmer. Is he fully healed from his season-ending knee injury?

We get to see the maturation of their star wide receiver, Chad Ochocinco. Can he adjusts to being the sole remaining receiving threat with the loss of former teammate T. J. Houshmandzadeh? Wait... Chad who? Yeah. You read that right. Chad Ochocinco. You remember him don't you? He's the player formerly known as Chad Johnson. He officially changed his last name to Ochocinco in August, 2008. Maybe you don't recognize the spelling? OK, let me explain. Chad assumed the moniker of Ocho Cinco (Eight Five in Spanish) awhile back as an homage to his jersey number, 85. Because the NFL would not allow him to wear the name on his official jersey, Mr. Johnson decided to change his last name to Ocho Cinco. When he petitioned the NFL to allow the change, they explained that they would only allow it if he paid them for all of the jerseys that had already been manufactured with his former last name. Not wanting to incur the enormous cost of purchasing all of those jerseys, Chad kept "C. Johnson" on the back of his #85 jersey for the remainder of the season.

So... fast-forward to May, 2009. Chad, again, requested that the NFL officially recognize his new last name Ocho Cinco. This time around, the NFL granted his request. Henceforth, the NFL will officially recognize his new official last name and attribute all statistical contribution to Chad Ochocinco. Additionally, the NFL officials have explained that the spelling of the last name is reflective of the official documentation. That's right... Chad's last name is NOT Ocho Cinco. Officially, it is Ochocinco, all one word.

All of that said, let me just say this loud and clear! I can't wait to watch HBO's Hard Knocks. Can you imagine how much fun it will be to see the reactions of everybody in that locker room? Do you think Chad is happy about the latest stance of the NFL? He was already asking for a trade out of Cincy? They need to start filming the show early!!! I want to see Carson Palmer limping off of the field because the new 1st round draft pick rookie Offensive Tackle blew his assignment and the QB got creamed. Then, Chad Ochocinco will run over and bark at the QB because the pass was not on target. Then the coaches will yell and scream at the defense because despite a hard hit on the QB, a WR not executing the route correctly and the pass being wobbly, the defense still allowed a completed pass because they are just as sorry as they were last year! I'm telling you right now -- this is gonna be fun to watch. Maybe Chad Ochocinco will market his Ocho Cinco jersey to the masses and dig into the profits of the NFL and their stupid "official" Ochocinco version of the #85 jersey. Maybe this will be a good thing! Maybe Carson Palmer will no longer be able to provide his media-friendly comments in support of Chad's antics. Maybe that is what the team needs. Maybe, just maybe, we'll get a look inside the culture of the Bengals that seems to foster poor judgment and bad behavior off the field? Maybe!

Opinions vary on what the 2009-2010 version of the Cincinnati Bengals will be as a team. But, don't be surprised if we watch a team find a way to rally behind a great coach, great talent, and great football passion. We may witness the evolution of a team that will have nowhere to hide. With the cameras of HBO rolling, maybe this team will find a true identity that it can use to define itself on and off the field. Maybe!