Chris Johnson's first three seasons have ranked him fourth all time among running backs with the most yards. In each of those three years he averaged five yards per carry. In the recent off-season, CJ2K waited out for a big contract that he felt like he deserved.
The season started slow for CJ2K. He had missed the whole of the pre-season and was carefully given more and more touches. After all, spending 56 million dollars on a player you want to keep him healthy. However in the recent game against the Texans, Johnson averaged 1.8 yard per carry and was out-performed by his backup. Johnson has rushed for 268 yards and a touchdown. Not quite quality worth 50 million.
Johnson's struggles have been blamed on the offensive line, lack of communication and even poor play calling. No one has blamed him. Is it time for Johnson to take responsibility? In my opinion, definitely.
The Titan's running-back commented after the game that, "I won't say that I'm the issue." Amazing. The man who wants a new contract and wont turn up to training camp. His greed has excelled his legs. Getting that huge pay off has led to arrogance and too much comfort.
Watching Johnson play you do not quite see that burst of speed, that claw for the extra yards that we use to. Ultimately I do not see the confidence in him. It would be nice to say that his lack of performance is because defences are focused in the run due to no passing game. But, Matt Hasselbeck has provided a new spark to the Titan's passing game and logically should open up lanes for Johnson. Even Nate Washington has become a big receiver after Kenny Britt went on IR.
I think it is time for Munchak to stop making excuses and covering Johnson's behind. Munchak responded to Johnson's comments on Sunday by saying, "I don't think he meant to say that he has stepped back and it's everyone else's problems." Did he not hear Johnson's comments? It is exactly what he said. Johnson was selfish when he held out for big money, selfish when he made negative comments on Twitter about the Titan's fans, and now he is selfish when there is a clearly an issue that he himself should own up to.
I would even go as far as to say that the reason the Titan's have not recently thrown the ball well is because teams are not worried about the run. Munchak has no choice but to stick by his multi-million dollar prized running back, but dropping him for a quarter or a game could help.
I do not buy into the idea that Johnson just wants money. He is an athlete. What he needs is a challenge. He needs to know that he is not guaranteed a starting place until he can handle it. Munchak would be doing everyone a favour by giving Javon Ringer the start or even split carries with CJ2K. It would also allow the fans to see Johnson fighting for his place back. The fans would be back on his side and the whole issue, whats wrong with CJ, would be over and Titans could potentially be play-off bound if they sort out this issue.
No comments:
Post a Comment