The Cincinnati Bengals have been one of the best wide receiver teams in the entire NFL throughout the past twenty-five years. Throughout the 2000s, Cincinnati had one of the best tandems of wide receivers in the league with talented deep threat Chad “OchoCinco” Johnson and excellent possession player T.J. Houshmandzadeh. Then in the 2010s, Cincinnati was again on top of the world with the overall talent of the 2011 first-round pick A.J. Green.
Over the past few seasons, Cincinnati has maintained that trend with elite deep threat Ja’Marr Chase, lanky target man Tee Higgins, and the high-utility slot receiver Tyler Boyd. The ultra-gifted trio in Cincinnati has single-handedly transformed the team into a Super Bowl contender. This offseason, salary cap contention indicates that the team will likely lose both Higgins and Boyd to the free agency market. Past that, the future has been murky at best for this prodigious group of wide receivers.
Cincinnati Bengals Legend Passes on Some Key Advice to Zac Taylor
Now, in a completely unprecedented (and arguably unasked for) move, Cincinnati legend Chad Johnson has taken to the talk shows to make his opinion known on the matter. After his retirement in 2012, Johnson has remained a stalwart fan of the organization and comments like this are relatively common and always cheerful.
“Hey Odell, Odell Beckham, come on down to Cincinnati,” Johnson stated on “The Nightcap Show”. “Let me know what you think about that. Catching balls from Joe Burrow,” before later borderline begging the Baltimore Ravens free agent to reach out to him personally as he issued a request to Beckham Jr, saying: “You will love it. Text my phone.”
While he certainly hasn’t been the same force that he once was, former Baltimore Ravens wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. was certainly one of the most talented receivers in the NFL during the late 2010s. After he left the team in 2019, he succumbed to less-than-stellar quarterback play with the Cleveland Browns from 2020 to 2022 and then the Baltimore Ravens in 2023. While reigning Most Valuable Player Lamar Jackson is an excellent quarterback, his skillset certainly didn’t bring out the best in Beckham.
Johnson meanwhile was a legend in Cincinnati after a string of excellent seasons in the mid-2000s put his name on the map. On top of his All-Pro level talent, Johnson had a larger-than-life personality that included a plethora of hilarious touchdown celebrations that essentially forced the NFL to legalize the practice.
Beckham finished last season with Baltimore with 35 receptions for 565 receiving yards and three touchdowns in what will be a less-than-memorable season for him in Baltimore. If the talented wide receiver wanted to match up with elite quarterback Joe Burrow, the LSU man might be able to end his remarkable career on a high note.
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