5 Reasons Chad Ochocinco Is BETTER THAN T.J. Houshmandzadeh...

                                               ...and You Know I'm Right!

     You may not like to hear it, in fact I may get lambasted for speaking such blasphemy...but here I go!

     Chad Ochocinco is a better Wide Receiver than T.J. Houshmandzadeh! Whew that feels good to finally say it after holding back all these months! In fact I think I will say it one more time...Chad Ochocinco is better than T.J. Houshmandzadeh and you know it! Now that it is out in the open I think it's important for us to understand why he is better, and believe me he is! I guess there are a lot of reasons why Chad is more talented, and also a lot of reasons why he hasn't recently been appreciated for his skills, but I'm going to focus on 5 main reasons for today.

     Before I begin with my list of reasons why I think Chad is better than T.J. let me first say why I think he is not appreciated for his talent. The reason is that he hasn't deserved it lately...he hasn't been as consistent on the field (especially in 2008), and he has seemingly had a bad attitude. He has held himself out of practice and has acted very much out of character lately causing fans to question whether or not his antics on the field have always been simply the self-absorbed 'Terrell Owens' type of showmanship.

     Let's face it, we as fans can get very emotional about our teams and our players, and can also turn on a dime from one opinion to an entirely opposing perspective very quickly. An example of this would be the perception of T.J. Houshmandzadeh, and how that perception changed over the last few seasons. As of June 2009, most Cincinnati Bengals fans that I talk to about Houshmandzadeh use the following adjectives: loyal, hardworking, tough, team player, has strong fundamentals etc. If you were to ask those same fans what they thought of Chad Ochofinko they would be: selfish, whiny, cocky, lazy, overrated etc.

     Certainly most of the fans would contend that T. J. is the better of the two after all he is honest (and Chad isn't), loyal (Chad isn't, right?), hardworking (No Not Chad), and the list goes on. The pattern that I see is a very common bias in sports. Someone upsets you with their personality and poor choices and it's hard to overlook those glaring flaws. In the end though, we as Bengals fans have to be objective when comparing these two different players with contrasting styles. The upside is we have the better of the two stars.

1. The number one reason Chad is better is he has more CONSISTENT career success.

     In 2002 he caught 69 balls for 1166 yds and 16.9 Yards per catch with 5 TDS, and he hasn't looked back until last season, leading the team in receiving from 2002-2007. After leading the team 6 of the last 7 years, I think he needs to get some credit, yet fans tend to easily dismiss these facts and forget what he has done over his career.

Just because the 'What have you done for me lately' attitude and wanting fast food results have become the norm in sports today doesn't mean they are right, or will lead us to success.

2. Chad's numbers are not only more CONSISTENT...they are more IMPRESSIVE!

     Mr. Ochocinco has caught 612 passes in his career for 8,905 yards with an average of 14.6 yards per catch! Add to that number 53 career TD receptions and you have a very impressive career for Mr. Ochocinco.

     Let's compare those stats to the 507 career receptions for 5,782 yards that T.J. has. He has recorded 11.4 yards per catch, and scored 37 TDS (16 less than Chad) in his career also. Although these are solid stats, and T.J. is a baller without a doubt, Chad has been WAY more impressive considering they are they same age.

   3. Chad is a more COMPLETE player than T.J., as a Wide Receiver.

     As previously displayed. Chad has had 105 more catches for 3,123 more yards and averaged 3.2 more yards to catch to boot. Not to mention he has had 16 more TD catches. When you add these stats up what does it say? Chad is the complete package athletically. He has the size and route running and discipline to be consistent, yet much more game-breaking speed to run the deep route than T.J., and is just more of an all around talent.

     Also, the Pro Bowl selection committee seems to agree adding Chad to five Pro Bowls, and he is a three time all-pro! T.J. was only added in 2007.

4. Chad has been more of a THREAT to opposing defenses.

     Because he is the complete package, defenses have to tailor their game for Chad and his speed, route running and double moves in the open field. Because of this teams often double up on Ochocinco, leaving guys like T.J. with more opportunities to get open on high percentage throws.

5. Chad has been more RELIABLE!

     459 to 320. That is the number of career first down catches these two have recorded respectively, Chad of course winning by far again in the stat column. Stats don't lie is the expression I believe is most appropriate. This is a clear indication that Chad isn't just a flashy deep threat, and T.J. isn't just a 'good ole' workhorse who is under appreciated.' Chad can play, and he isn't just flash and mouth, he has been a reliable staple for this franchise for the past 8 seasons.

     In conclusion, I think that Chad has without a doubt made some mistakes as a player, and needs to continue to come back to being focused on the team a bit. However, he also has done some of the things he has out of being overly competitive! Bengals fans we have a great player right here in our own city, and most of us don't even realize it. The grass is always greener on the other side, and we always have bias toward the guy we think is working the hardest, but Chad Javon Ochocinco is one of the best receivers in the NFL. Do I really have to say it two more times?

P.S. In the sentiment of Keyshawn Johnson...Chad, just change your damn name.