CJ Wants to be Paid like the Best

Only into his second year of his contract and Chris Johnson is asking for another one. He thinks he deserve to be the highest paid running back in the league or at least the highest paid offensive player besides the quarterback. Currently Stephen Jackson is the highest paid running back and the two prior to him was Jones-Drew and Clinton Ports. Clearly, Johnson outperformed all three backs this past season. Johnson’s agent didn’t want to discuss contract numbers or the possibility of an extension, and neither did the Titans. Johnson may consider holding out if the Titans seem disinterested. He’s already said he won’t attend offseason workouts in Nashville but plans to be there for offseason practices. He's not going to create a stir about renegotiating his contract.

Offensive POY

Like I predicted, as a consolation prize, Chris Johnson won the Offensive MVP. But CJ should have won the MVP over Peyton Manning. I mean a runningback on an 8-8 team deserved the MVP award over the game's best quarterback playing on a 14-2 team. It's hard to argue either way, but this is to congratulate him. Johnson received 38 1/2 of 50 votes from a nationwide panel of NFL writers and broadcasters in balloting conducted by the Associated Press. New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees was second with nine votes. Johnson rushed for a franchise-record 2,006 yards to join Eric Dickerson, Jamal Lewis, Barry Sanders, Terrell Davis and O.J. Simpson as the only NFL running backs to reach the 2,000-yard mark in a season. Johnson rushed for at least 100 yards 12 different times, including his final 11 games. His top performance was a franchise-record 228- yard. Back to this topic though why didn't he get the MVP. I mean the last time an MVP went to a non-QB on a team with fewer than 10 wins was 1997, when Barry Sanders shared the honor with Brett Favre. That year, Sanders finished with more than 2,000 yards rushing for a 9-7 Lions team. So maybe if the Titans would have made the playoffs we wouldn't be singing this song. So the conclusion is Offensive Player of the Year is simply a consolation prize for players with crazy stats.

CJ Working For Repeat

Man this dude is always hungry and it will make him get the title as the best running back if he keeps it up. Chris Johnson said he is ready for a busy off-season and a potential repeat performance. He believes he can one-up himself next year to get Eric Dickerson’s single-season rushing mark of 2,105. Johnson and Titans coach Jeff Fisher believe the 24-year-old running back can possibly duplicate his 2,000-yard season, something that has never been done in the history of the NFL. During the first six games, Johnson was still sharing carries with White and averaged 99.3 yards per game on an average of 15.8 carries a game. In the 10 games Young started, Johnson took over the rushing duties almost exclusively, averaging 26.3 carries and 141 yards per game. So it will be interesting to see how he will do with everybody knowing he is getting the ball and him being the focal point. Looking back on the season their were times when the record could have been a lot closer than what he finished with. In San Fran he took a 81 yard run to the house but was called back because he was ruled out of bounds. Also that holding call on Sunday was questionable. But as the ritual goes giving things to your lineman, Johnson commemorated his stellar season by giving Rolex watches to his offensive linemen. The watches are engraved “CJ2K 2,006” and will be delivered this week to his teammates. Johnson also said he would like as many of them as possible to accompany him to the Pro Bowl. I will have to keep that in mind when I crack 1,000 next season myself ha ha.

Race for 2K

Titans' playoff dreams are finished for this season. Now it's back to reality with goals quickly set on other historic marks. Finish 8-8, which no NFL team has ever managed after starting a season with six straight losses. And get Chris Johnson to 2,000 yards rushing, making him only the sixth player in league history to reach that mark. Johnson has 1,872 yards after he ran for 142 yards and a touchdown against San Diego. That was his 10th straight 100-yard rushing game, giving him the third-longest streak behind Barry Sanders (14 in 1997) and Marcus Allen (11 in 1985-86). Jamal Lewis was the last to run for 2,000 yards in 2003. "That record would mean a lot to me," Johnson said. "That was one of my goals that I set before this year started, and a lot of people didn't even think I would get close or whatever. To get that record would mean a lot to me. So basically this team will get back to work, and we got one more game left so hopefully we can get .500." Johnson isn't giving up on Eric Dickerson's single-season rushing record of 2,105 yards either. He would need 233 yards to tie the mark Dickerson set in 1984. That would be a new career high for the running back who ran for 228 yards against Jacksonville. The Seahawks should provide Johnson a realistic chance to set a few of those records. They’re not among the weakest defenses in the league, nor are they one of the strongest.

JC to CJ

In our world every player is the next somebody. For Kansas City Chiefs RB Jamaal Charles, the comparison has been the next Chris Johnson, all-world running back for the Tennessee Titans. Both are small, shifty and have the ability to score anywhere on the field. Johnson demonstrates that ability on just about a weekly basis. Charles has just flashed that potential only now and again. Both lead their respective teams in rushing. Charles just passed 600 yards and Johnson just passed 1,600 yards. Both lead their teams in receptions - Charles with 34 and Johnson with 42. Yeah, they're not the same player, but we need the comparisons to make us feel that our player is the next someone. "I'm a physical player and I can run the ball just like Chris Johnson does," Charles said after last week's loss to the Buffalo Bills when he rushed for a career high. more and more people who are talking about the Chiefs tailback,the JC-to-CJ comparison keeps popping up. "He looks a little bit like the [Chris] Johnson kid from Tennessee, where he has that home run ability," Browns defensive coordinator Rob Ryan said this week. "They're using him all over the place. They flex him out as a receiver and he's doing some great things out there, beating corners and things like that." "Jamaal has an ability to score form anywhere on the field and not a lot of guys in the NFL have that ability," Chiefs LB Mike Vrabel said this week. "Certainly those guys are hard to come by." He's definitely not Chris Johnson yet but at least over the last five weeks the comparisons have becoming more and more realistic.

Committed to Breaking the Record

Titans, especially the offensive linemen, are as committed as the second-year running back to helping Johnson become only the sixth player in NFL history to run for 2,000 yards in a season with an eye toward Eric Dickerson's single-season record of 2,105 yards. So offensive linemen, tight ends, fullback Ahmard Hall and even the wide receivers are busy blocking defenders. Johnson isn't just outrunning defenders, and those teammates, to the end zone. He's even more potent over the past few games because he's zigzagging around the field, letting teammates pick up defenders and following those blocks to the sliver of daylight he needs. Johnson has targeted becoming the first player since Jamal Lewis in 2003 to rush for 2,000 yards, this has become a team goal. The Titans kept handing the ball to Johnson in the fourth quarter against St. Louis, trying to boost his yardage.

CJ on the Way to 2K

In what was supposed to be a heavyweight bout pitting the NFL's top two rushers, Tennessee's Chris Johnson won a lopsided decision. But to be fair, the Rams' Steven Jackson wasn't in fighting shape. Playing for the third consecutive Sunday despite not practicing during the week because of a back injury that a source close to the situation said is a herniated disc, Jackson finally ran out of juice. He gutted out 89 yards two weeks ago against Seattle, followed by 112 last week at Chicago. But against the Titans' eighth-ranked run defense, Jackson was limited to 47 yards on 19 carries, a meager 2.5 yards per attempt. He caught two passes for 6 yards, finishing with a total of 53 yards from scrimmage. Johnson carried 28 times for 117 yards and latched on to three passes for 69 yards. That adds up to 186 yards of total offense. Johnson also scored three touchdowns, on runs of 39 and 3 yards, and a screen pass with which he dashed 66 yards, zigzagging between defenders to the end zone. Johnson, a second-year pro out of East Carolina, is an unusual blend of power, quickness and raw speed.Johnson boosted his league-leading rushing total to 1,626 yards, a pace that would put him at just over 2,000 for the season. The NFL record is 2,105, set by Eric Dickerson of the Los Angeles Rams in 1984. "Gaining 2,000 yards and breaking the record, it's not going to be easy," Johnson said. "It's a tough job, so I don't expect to go out there and have it be easy for me."

Thats 5 Straight!

Young’s miracle-working was even more amazing as it came on the game’s final play, the ball being snapped with six seconds left, and Young scrambling toward the line of scrimmage before letting the pass go with Britt making a leaping catch to give Tennessee its fifth consecutive win. Young lead an 18-play, 99-yard drive in the final 2:37 to rally the Tennessee Titans. Young was sensational, completing 27 of 43 passes for a career-high 387 yards, collecting 94 of those on the final drive, as he hit on 10 of 16 passes and converted on fourth down three times in the drive. His Rose Bowl heroics were from nearly four years ago were on more than a few people’s minds. “It was funny, because it was second or third down, down on the goal line and [Steve] Breaston came up to me and he was like, ‘God, this is déjà vu all over again. He did that to Michigan, and he did that to myself in the title game,” said Leinart, who played well in completing 21 of 31 for 220 yards. What was most impressive is Chris Johnson, amazingly enough, did not have one touch on the final drive. His presence had already been made though, arguably the best running back in the NFL, sprinted 85 yards for a touchdown late in the third quarter of Sunday's game. Johnson ran for 154 yards on 18 carries.

Best Back in the NFL? A Lot Closer

Chris Johnson is on track to break Eric Dickerson single season rushing record, and has rushed for 150 or more yards in 5 straight weeks, he also remains a credible threat in the passing game coming out the backfield. Chris Johnson is currently averaging 6.2 yards per carry, only two other running backs in NFL history have averaged more than 6.2 yards per carry since 1967. Adrian Peterson became everyone's unanimous pick as the best running back in the NFL. However, this year, the argument has become more muddled with the emergence of Chris Johnson. Not only that, Chris Johnson is quite possibly the most exciting player in the NFL. In just over a year-and-a-half, Johnson has fumbled twice, while Peterson, in two-and-a-half-plus seasons, has put the ball on the ground 17 times. But you cannot argue that Adrian Peterson can break games wide open, and every time he touches the ball we expect to see big things happen. Whether it be running through the second level of the defense and hardly breaking stride or running somebody over. I do not know which one I would pick but for right now I'll enjoy the show of having two great backs in the NFL as one is leaving.

Smash and Dash have had a divorce

Chris Johnson said Tuesday he is leaving LenDale White to find his own nickname. Johnson, in fact, has already found a new nickname “Every Coach’s Dream.’’ White might be leaning toward calling himself “Every Opposing Coach’s Nightmare’’. Well at least that was his first reaction when told about Johnson’s name. Also, Johnson earlier said his goal this year is to lead the league in rushing and win NFL Most Valuable Player. He is really making big plans.

Oh yeah and if you have any suggestions for Johnson's celebration twit them to him. Johnson asked fans following his Twitter account for touchdown dance ideas since he plans on being in the end zone more than the 10 times he was there last season. Well sounds like Chad "OchoCinco" has some competition.