Chad Johnson to play with torn labrum

Chad Johnson has a partially torn labrum and has decided to play through the injury.

"I've talked to a lot of people who have played with this injury," said Johnson, who wears a protective harness on the shoulder. "They didn't get surgery, and they played and had a successful season. So I'll be fine."

Johnson said he lobbied coach Marvin Lewis to let him play against the Colts, but was turned down.

"I asked Marvin to play Thursday, not to prove a point but to show that I'm ready to go," Johnson said. "And he told me no, there's no need. I already got hurt in one preseason game, there's no reason for another. I will be ready for the opener."

Last year, Kellen Winslow Jr. played with the same injury and wore a harness. Winslow finished 2007 with 82 receptions and 1,102 yards.

I admire (yes, admire) Johnson for his toughness and grit to play through the pain. Although he claims to have asked Lewis to play in a meaningless pre-season game to show he's "ready to go", I wonder if the injury is a little more severe than is being reported since the Bengals are reportedly shopping Rudi Johnson for a "real receiver." As always with Ocho Cinco, stay tuned...

Shawne Merriman - season over?

Having torn his posterior cruciate and lateral collateral ligaments, Shawne Merriman has been advised by doctors to have season-ending surgery. Or, he could play. However, if he plays on the injured knee, he faces the risk that his career (not season) would be over.

“It could be career-threatening if I did (play),” Merriman said. “It’s a possibility. That possibility is still open.”

“They’ve all said the same things about the injury,” Merriman said. “(They’re) kind of surprised that I’ve been playing with it up to this point.”

I admire players that battle pain and play through it. However, if the players' career (or, more importantly, their health) is on the line, it makes no sense to risk it.

Granted, if Merriman has season-ending surgery, he may have some regrets wishing he were on the field. Especially since this could be the Chargers year.

But if he doesn't have surgery and he damages his knee to the point that it ends his career, he'll definitely regret that much more.

Anquan Boldin asks for trade

One of my pet peeves is NFL players asking for new deals when they have multiple years left on their contracts. What's the point in negotiating long-term contracts if you want to rip them up and start over if it's not in your favor? In any event, Anquan Boldin now wants to be traded because he's not happy about the final 3 years of his 4 year contract.

Boldin said..."he doesn't feel his situation can be resolved and declaring he has no relationship with coach Ken Whisenhunt."

Whisenhunt sounded puzzled when discussing reports that Boldin had said he was no longer speaking to the coach.

"We've been communicating," he said. "If communicating is talking, that's what we have been doing at practice. As we go forward, I don't know. I don't foresee anything changing. If it does, it's in his court."

Asked if he believes his standoff with Arizona can be resolved, Boldin shook his head and simply said, "No."

If the contract was such an issue, why didn't Boldin sign a 1-year contract? He's only 1 year of current 4-year deal. He couldn't see this coming?

Farve, Packers to create long-term deal when Favre is done?

Over the past several months, much has been done to tarnish the reputation of the Green Bay Packers and the legacy of Brett Favre. The Packers tried to convince Favre to stay retired with a reported $20 million "marketing" offer.

And while Favre turned down the deal in favor of returning to play and was traded to the New York Jets last week, the Packers are expected to offer him a similar agreement once he retires for good.

"We do want to have a long-term relationship with Brett," Packers president and CEO Mark Murphy said in a news conference after Favre was traded last week. "He will always be a Packer and he's very important to this organization."

I think it would be a good move by both and help to repair the damage that was done over the past few months.

Tom Coughlin - Extortion/Blackmail Victim

Quick: Imagine an NFL Head Coach having a sex scandal. Now, was the coach that first popped into your head Tom Coughlin? Probably not.

Well, Herbert Albert Simpson is being charged with sending two threatening letters to Coach Coughlin. He faces up to 2 years in prison, $250k fine, 2 years of "supervised release" and a $100 special assessment.

The first letter claimed the encounter happened while the Giants were in Philadelphia and it threatened to expose the fictional event unless Coughlin paid between $20,000-$30,000, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.

Simpson's letters also threatened that if Coughlin did not pay the money, his life would be made "a living hell by doing something to [his] family," according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.

The women named in the letters told federal investigators the handwriting was Simpson's. He was a former co-worker.

Authorities said Simpson wanted revenge against the two women over a work-related issue and never thought the coach would get the letters.

It goes without saying, but I'll say it anyways. This guy is a moron.

Steve Smith, Ken Lucas brawl

According to Carolina Growl, Panthers WR Steve Smith and DB Ken Lucas got into a fight at camp. Not sure how Steve Smith looked after the fisticuffs, but he might have said "if you think this looks bad, you should see the other guy."

Lucas left the field bloodied and with an ice pack over his left eye.

The two men were on the sidelines while other members of the team were working through special teams drills when the fight broke out. They exchanged several punches before teammates and coach John Fox charged in to break up the fight. Linebacker Jon Beason had to pull Smith away from Lucas. It took several people to restrain the men and restore order.

Dwayne Jarrett better be careful. He's next...

Shortly after the fight Smith came over, with Muhsin Muhammad and another coach by his side, and appeared to try and reconcile with Lucas. The two men briefly exchanged a hug. Smith left and later came back to check on Lucas again.

This kind of things always seem to happen at camp. Tempers flare with the grind of camp and the hot summer temperature. Good to see they kissed and made up.