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Chad Ochocinco was released by the Patriots on Thursday. Reports say he
may be heading to New York and the Giants
Pro Football Weekly...
Ochocinco
released by Patriots
The Patriots released WR Chad Ochocinco on Thursday, the team announced.
Ochocinco was not at the team’s OTA practice on Thursday, his first
absence among the sessions open to the media. According to ESPN’s Adam
Schefter, the Pats tried unsuccessfully to trade Ochocinco before
deciding to release him.
Acquired from the Bengals last July for a fifth-round pick, Ochocinco
was a nonfactor during his year in New England. In 15 games and three
starts, he had 15 catches for 276 yards and one touchdown, which was
the least productive season of his career. He took a pay cut in the
spring.
Ochocinco had one catch in the playoffs — a 21-yard reception in the
Super Bowl — and he did not play in the AFC championship win over the
Ravens.
Ochocinco, 34, spent the first 10 seasons of his career with the
Bengals, which included six consecutive 1,000-yard seasons from
2002-07. He has 67 career touchdown catches. Ochocinco is now an
unrestricted free agent.
The way we see it
He wasn’t a distraction, or a problem in the locker room — from all
indications, Ochocinco simply could never get acclimated to the
Patriots’ complex offense. Despite it being his “dream” to play for
Bill Belichick and with Tom Brady, Ochocinco was rarely on the same
page with Brady.
The Patriots are loaded at wide receiver and still have work to do
before the season starts in terms of trimming the numbers at the
position. It’s not a surprise that Ochocinco will not be a Patriot next
season, though it is a bit surprising that his release happened this
early. The Patriots didn’t lose much for him — a fifth-round pick, and
the fact that Ochocinco didn’t contribute once clearly didn’t
negatively affect the Patriots.
Where Ochocinco’s NFL career goes from here remains to be seen.
Optimists will note that he caught 67 passes just two seasons ago for
Cincinnati and was generally still regarded as a receiver to be
respected. However, his glaring lack of production in New England — a
club featuring one of the NFL’s elite passers in Tom Brady — may
suggest that Ochocinco will have to vie for just a complementary role
at his next stop.
It will be interesting to see the interest level Ochocinco generates;
on balance, he has had a strong NFL career, but he is closer to the end
than the beginning. Known for his outsized personality in Cincinnati,
Ochocinco toned it down in New England, which can’t hurt him if he
tries to sign on elsewhere. Teams interested in Ochocinco will need to
weigh what he has left — and why it didn’t work out in New England.
Read this and other articles at Yahoo Sports
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