Former Cincinnati Bengals WR Chad Johnson not as bothered by RoH as Boomer Esiason
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Former Cincinnati Bengals WR Chad Johnson not as bothered by RoH as Boomer Esiason
Former Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Boomer Esiason was not overly thrilled by the team’s invite to their October Ring of Honor game. As you may or may not have surmised, the Bengals invitation was another exercise in frugality.
Basically, the team offered him two free tickets (oh, the benevolence) with the chance to purchase more. Oh, and hotels and airfare are on you, our beloved, esteemed alum.
After reading the invitation aloud on his WFAN radio show, Esiason said, “you think I’m an elitist if I say no to that?”
It caused quite a stir, just putting gasoline on the “Bengals are cheap” fire that continues to burn with every contract negotiation that drifts through their transom. Boomer’s fellow 2023 Ring of Honor inductee Chad Johnson said the tickets are actually suites, while also acknowledging he didn’t handle the rest of the expenses.
“We sit in the suite,” OchoCinco said on Nightcap, which he co-hosts with Shannon Sharpe. “I don’t know. I don’t know what Boomer’s talking about. I went in. I went into the Ring of Honor with Boomer. Those who are part of the Ring of Honor. Alumni have been back once already. You sit in the suites. You don’t sit in the stands. Now, as far as room and board go, I’m not sure that works. I always stay at the AC Hotel.”
Chad Johnson says he wasn’t aware of the other expenses
Johnson kind of acknowledged that Boomer was correct. Johnson had to pay his expenses too, he just didn’t handle the logistics so out of sight, out of mind?
“Did it come off your credit card? Or did it come off their credit card?” Sharpe asked.
“I don’t remember. I didn’t book my stuff. My baby did she upstairs,” said Johnson.
Sharpe is a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame and said that Denver Broncos owner Pat Bowlen offered to pay all expenses for 30 of his guests to attend his induction ceremony. Mind you, that’s a Hall of Fame event, not one that’s even Broncos specific.
“I’ll pay for 30 people to come and put 30 people up,” Bowlen told Sharpe.
Because that’s what classy organizations do? The Brown family just doesn’t get it. In 2000, fourth-overall pick Peter Warrick had a plane chartered for him to the team’s facility. It was the first-time they ever did that. That was also around the time there were strong rumors that the team only had one full-time scout.
Boomer’s co-host reads the full text of the invite
I didn’t get to hear the clip, but I’ll bet this is way more hilarious hearing someone read it. Teams like the Bengals have no idea how bad this kind of stuff makes them look. A few dollars would go a long way, but the Bengals always opt to save the money. They must have a ginormous rainy-day account.
“You tell me what this invite is, and then we can discuss it,” his co-host Greg Giannotti said to Esiason as he read the email invitation. “Okay, the Bengals organization is excited to celebrate our legends community and kindly invite you and a guest to join us in celebrating Dave Lapham and Lemar Parrish on Ring of Honor weekend in October, culminating at our game on Sunday, October 26, when the Bengals take on the New York Jets. More details are below, and we kindly ask you to RSVP no later than Friday, August 22. You and a guest can receive two complimentary tickets with an opportunity to purchase an additional one, if you wish.”
They are serious with this stuff. I’ll bet the Brown family Christmas is full of free, two-month subscriptions to Netflix and the receiving family member is on the hook for the following ten months.
“If you are traveling in for the weekend from out of town, we have secured a block of rooms at the Renaissance Hotel at a preferred discounted rate,” Giannotti continued. “Rooms are limited, so please book directly for the early and the best rate. We look forward to hosting you in The Jungle for an unforgettable weekend. Don’t hesitate to reach out to me or another guy on the staff with any questions. Thank you. And Who Dey.”
I’m speechless, but not surprised if that makes sense.