While Chad Johnson already lost his golden mohawk, the colorful Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver has been fined $5,000 by the National Football League. The player can still make an appeal of the league’s sanction before one week. Otherwise he will be obliged to pay the fine.
The league explained that it has fined Johnson $5,000. This sanction took place for having wearing a Velcro nameplate saying “Ocho Cinco” across the back of his uniform jersey before last Sunday’s loss to the Atlanta Falcons. “Ocho Cinco”, simply meaning his uniform No. 85 in Spanish, is the name by which Johnson claimed he wished to be called the day leading up to the game. Sport experts already expected on Monday evening that the league would fine Johnson for his stunt.
Johnson was wearing the fake nameplate over his real surname on the uniform during the pre-game warm-ups. This was conspicuous when he met with Falcons cornerback DeAngelo Hall, against whom he vowed to score two touchdowns, in practice. Just before kickoff, quarterback Carson Palmer remove the Velcro “Ocho Cinco” nameplate, letting appearing “C. Johnson” on the back of the receiver’s jersey.
It is not the first time that Johnson is fined for his end zone choreography. In his six-year career the NFL already levied several fines against him. The last incident dates back to last training camp when Johnson wearing a Mohawk. Since Wednesday’s practice he had to go on the field without it. Johnson also claimed last week that he would shave his head if he did not score at least two touchdowns against the Falcons. He scored only once. The sixth-year veteran is likely to make appeal of this decision as he already did in the past.