Chris Johnson: Early Struggles and Fan Criticism Have Damaged His Confidence

Chris Johnson is still an elite rusher. He didn't suddenly lose his speed, vision and agility in a matter of months. CJ2K's problems are almost completely psychological. 

Some players do not deal with the business aspects of the game very well. Chris Johnson is apparently one of those types of personalities. Something very similar happened to Devin Hester of the Chicago Bears during his contract negotiations.

As things became public, Hester seemed more and more bothered by the things that were written about him and his perception among fans.

Johnson seemed to show some of these same traits, even going as far as dropping a Twitter tirade on a fan who criticized him for his holdout.

If a fan is able to evoke that much emotion from a player, it is obvious the player cares what the fans think. So, though he believed in his worth enough to hold out, he was torn because of his discomfort with being viewed as greedy or ungrateful.

All this emotional baggage compounded with the fact that Johnson still doesn't appear to be in tip top football shape. Sure, he is in better shape than most non-athletes but the margin for error and difference on that level is small. It is the difference between getting through a hole and not.

Speaking of holes, it hasn't helped that the Tennessee Titans offensive line hasn't made many for Johnson this year either. A team that lived and died with the run throughout Johnson's tenure and even before, seems to have changed it's identity.

All of this has amounted to a slow start for Johnson which culminated in his benching this week against the Indianapolis Colts. The Colts just happened to be the worst team against the run in the NFL.

Johnson's confidence is shaken and it seems pretty obvious. Still, the benching can not be a long term solution. The Titans are definitely going to give every opportunity to get a return on their substantial investment. 

The best way for the Titans to get Johnson on track is to continue to get him the ball. They have no other choice now.