Mike Sliver Inteviews Bengals WR Chad Johnson - CNNSI.Com

I swear some of Sports Illustrated Senior Writer and All-Time Cal Bear Mike Sliver's work doesn't make the magazine and that's a crime. Here's one example. His interview with Chad Johnson of the Bengals. But I've got to wonder if this caused the Bengals to get smashed by the Patriots? Hmm....

Chad Johnson
Bengals star's favorite celebrations, trash-talking foes
Posted: Friday September 29, 2006 12:28PM; Updated: Friday September 29, 2006 3:55PM

Chad Johnson eats the same meal at the same restaurant every afternoon he spends in Cincinnati, and were it not for the platinum-blond Mohawk -- and his current status as the NFL's most dangerous receiver -- it would be tempting to say his arrival at his favorite haunt on a recent Friday was rather uneventful.

The last time I'd broken bread with Johnson, at an Island's in L.A., he'd asked the waitress for a job application, later explaining, "You never know when you might get cut." I assumed he was doing it for effect, until one of his female friends joined us and informed me that it was common practice for a guy who, due to academic struggles and questionable commitment to his craft during his post-high-school years, came perilously close to squandering his NFL dreams.

This time Johnson seemed a bit more secure about his status, though his rough edges remain -- for example, the locker-room tantrum he threw at halftime of the Bengals' playoff defeat to the Steelers last January, one of the many topics we discussed.

Silver: I know you love to talk trash -- you and Joey Porter put on a quite a show every time you play. Is there one opponent you're really looking forward to facing this season?

Johnson: Yeah, Joey and I have this thing where we meet at the 50 before every game and let each other have it nonstop. Away from the field I love the guy, but when we get in that situation, watch out. And Troy [Polamalu] is always nudging me and hitting me during games, but he freaks me out because he never talks. I'm like, "Damn, Troy, what the f---?" Then I hear him interviewed and crack up: He's a beast on the field and he sounds like Michael Jackson.... CLICK FOR THE REST...