Chad Johnson guarantees he's 'going to play again'

  • By Marc Sessler
  • Around the League Writer
  • Updated: Dec. 5, 2012 at 01:51 p.m


Chad Johnson's NFL career came to a crashing halt this summer following his arrest for domestic battery. The free-agent receiver is asking for one more chance on the field.
"I messed up. I messed up. Period. I lost everything. Football, my wife, the family I had, over something that didn't really mean anything," Johnson said Wednesday on ESPN's "First Take," via Rotoworld.com.

"I lost that edge when my focus went away from the game of football. I know that. I understand that."

Johnson's very public divorce from Evelyn Lozada was made official in September. He's flown under the radar since, but Johnson talked Wednesday of a personal transformation and guaranteed he was "going to play again."

At 34 years old and multiple seasons removed from tangible on-field production, Johnson has a long way to go to convince teams he's worth their time. He has speed -- we saw that with the Miami Dolphins -- but he's not a plug-and-play wideout at this stage in his career.

Johnson, of course, would disagree. In an open plea to front office-types everywhere, he made his case:

"Dear NFL teams," Johnson said. "At any point -- maybe not this year, because it's kind of late and I'm still working on myself -- but at any point next year, if you're looking for my services, what am I bringing to the table?

"Humility. I'm quiet. And I'm always open."