Monday, November 26, 2007

Chad Johnson has his own Camera-Gate

It would be nice to act like Chad Johnson is just a fun guy. After all, he has received nothing but praise while fellow troublemakers Terrell Owens and Randy Moss have been hounded by the media, who have tried to destroy the two receivers' reputations over the years. Johnson played class clown to Owens' problem child. Tony Kornheiser gets excited to see his new celebrations. He does his best Peyton Manning impression by during various advertisements. He will challenge you to a game of Madden. He is also one of the most selfish professional athletes I have ever seen.

I hate the rules barring players from celebrating touchdowns. While I understand that the NFL doesn't want Riverdance-esque choreography like the kind imagined in the opening credits of Baseketball, the fines and penalties the league has put in place over the last few years is nothing but an overreaction. With that being said, let me remind you: it is against the rules.

Owens, the Elvis of excessive celebration, is the cause for most of this. But when he was doing it, it was new. You didn't know how the NFL would react. We know now that not only will you be fined, but your team will suffer as well. This is why celebrations are selfish; you're willing to cost your team a penalty so you can have fun. And don't tell me that Johnson is pulling a Guy Fawkes and trying to send a message to the league. The fans pay too much money and the stakes are high enough where these kind of actions have no place.

Yes, it is sad that the No Fun League robs us of post-scoring theatrics. But as of now, it is against the rules. It is no coincidence that in the year where Owens and Moss have cleaned up their act, the national media is starting to condemn Johnson. As they should, because stupid rules and unnecessary enforcement is one thing, but selfishness is another.

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