Former Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Chad Johnson is quite the individual. The dynamic pass catcher is known just as much for his big personality as he is for his elite abilities on the field.
While Johnson would carve up defensive backs with ease, he was unafraid to tell them about it. In addition to that, he was one of the original people to go above and beyond when it came to touchdown celebrations and laid the groundwork for the end zone shenanigans we see on Sundays today.
Despite being known for many things, both as it relates to his play and his infectious persona, what Johnson is probably known best for is the fact that he legally changed his name during his career. Chad Johnson became better known as Chad ‘Ochocinco.’
Let’s take a closer look at the hilarious name change and how the decision came to be for the wide receiver.
Exploring How Chad Ochocinco Was Born
Johnson legally changed his name to “Chad Ochocinco” in 2008 after the idea came to him during the NFL‘s Spanish Heritage Month. While Johnson initially did so as a prop and a joke during the month of September that year, a fine from the league changed his thought process on the whole idea and birthed an iconic NFL moment as a result.
On an episode of ‘Club Shay Shay’ with host Shannon Sharpe, Johnson elaborated on how and why the Ochocinco name became a legally changed name rather than just a joke.
MORE: PFN Life — Off-the-Field Content
“So I had the equipment manager create the velcro and Spanish Heritage Month obviously is the month of September in the NFL,” Johnson said. “I went out there with that on the jersey. Carson (Palmer) rips it off before the game starts,” Ochocinco stated.
“We were playing the Atlanta Falcons — I’ll never forget — Michael Vick. The league office fined me the following morning $30,000. Like 30 grand for altering the NFL uniform? So my stick back to the NFL as an F-you, no disrespect to Goodell — you know we are good now. I changed my name purposely in the offseason.
“So now I put it on all my jerseys. Since y’all want to be rude and mean. Now at that time, it was a stick to the NFL. Then it just turned into a whole brand right at that point. And I just played it off, like it was marketing, and it worked just as that would.”
From that point on, a nickname was born. While it was over 15 years ago that the name change occurred, it has been something that has stood the test of time as people to this day still refer to the former wide receiver by the not so new — anymore — name.
There might not be anything that explains just who Chad Ochocinco is more than his explanation of how he came about picking the name.
It is a decision that helps define a person and a career at the same time.
Want to predict the rest of the 2023 season with our FREE NFL Playoff Predictor? Looking for the most up-to-date NFL standings? What about a breakdown of team depth charts or the NFL schedule? Pro Football Network has you covered with that and more!
