As Peter King writes in his latest addition of “Monday Morning Quarterback”, Chad Johnson desperately wants out of Cincinnati and recently cried on the phone to former teammate T.J. Houshmandzadeh about it.

“Chad Johnson called me today. Crying. He wonders why everyone can get traded but him.”

– Former Johnson teammate T.J. Houshmandzadeh, now with Seattle, on NFL Network Friday night.

Ocho Cinco wasn’t crying when the Bengals signed him to a six-year, $35.5 million contract in 2006 was he?

I know Cincinnati is one of the black holes in the NFL, but just once I would like to hear a player that is stuck on a bad team say that he’s going to do everything in his power to get his club to win. I have no idea what Johnson is going through, so maybe I should just shut my mouth, but why can’t he say, “Hey, with Carson Palmer back to full health and Laveranues Coles next to me, we’re really going to do things next year”? And then go out and prove it by showing up to all the offseason workouts and training his ass off.

But no, instead, players like Johnson cries (literarily) and throws a hissy fit until their team finally gives in and trades them for less than they’re ultimately worth. It’s ridiculous.

After losing T.J. Houshmandzadeh to the Seahawks on Monday, the Bengals addressed their need at wide receiver with the signing free agent Laveranues Coles to a four-year, $28 million contract.

Considering Housh got $8 mil per year over the next five years, it would appear that the Bengals overpaid for Coles. But keep in mind that once Houshmandzadeh was signed, Coles became the best wideout on the market and therefore was able to cash in.

At 31, Coles is no spring chicken but he can still play. He’s a solid overall athlete, an excellent route runner and he isn’t afraid to block. Despite missing six games last year due to injury, Coles is strong and durable. He doesn’t have elite speed and he won’t run away from defenders in the open field, but that doesn’t mean he can’t create separation.

Despite paying what I estimate to be about a mil more per year than he is worth, this was a nice signing by the Bengals. The addition of Coles will allow Cincy to concentrate on their other needs in the draft and now they won’t be tempted to select a wideout early when those picks could better be used to address the offensive line and defense.

After losing T.J. Houshmandzadeh to the Seahawks on Monday, the Bengals have emerged as a possible candidate for free agent Laveranues Coles, who was released by the Jets last week.

Cincinnati has bigger needs than wide receiver, including finding a new center, adding a quality pass-rusher and finding overall depth at running back and along the offensive line. But with plenty of cap space available (the Bungles started with $26 million at the start of free agency), Coles could be a solid addition to a team that lost a lot of production at receiver when Housh signed with Seattle.

Of course, the Bengals could wait until draft day to address the wide receiver position; in fact, now that the Seahawks signed Housh there’s little chance they would draft Texas Tech wideout Michael Crabtree in April. That means Crabtree could fall to No. 6 and if Cincy pulls the trigger, they could get significantly younger at the receiver position while also filling the hole vacated by Houshmandzadeh.

There are obvious risks involved with waiting until the draft to address the receiver position. One, Crabtree might not fall to No. 6 and two, he is scheduled to have foot surgery soon and might miss some time this summer recovering. There’s obviously no guarantee that he’ll develop into a productive pro, either.

The Bengals could probably afford to offer Coles a four-year deal in the $6 mil per year range. If they do, they know they would be signing a consummate pro that has produced throughout his entire career. Therefore, signing him (if he’s even interested) seems like a better choice and then Cincy could look to addressing one of their other needs ni the first round.

National cut day in the NFL continues. The Jets released Laveranues Coles, while the Rams cut quarterback Trent Green and Drew Bennett.

The Jets released veteran wide receiver Laveranues Coles this afternoon — but both sides left open the possibility of his return to the team.

Coles, who was scheduled to earn a guaranteed $6 million salary for the 2009-10 season, wanted a long-term deal with the team. But when the two sides could not reach an agreement, they reached a compromise, giving Coles the right to find his own deal on the open market on the eve of free agency.

Considering the market for wide receivers, which is pretty much T.J. Houshmandzadeh at this point, Coles could still get a decent contract from another team. If he doesn’t get the long-term deal he covets, a reunion with the Jets seems more than likely.

The Rams will have a new backup quarterback in 2009. The team released Trent Green, who was one year into his second tour of duty with the team on Wednesday in a move that saves the team $1.3 million of salary cap space.

The departure of Green, a two-time Pro Bowler who was with the Rams previously in 1999 and 2000, means the Rams will have a new No. 2 quarterback in 2009. One possibility is Tampa Bay free agent Jeff Garcia, who played for Rams offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur in Philadelphia in 2006.

The team also released wide receiver Drew Bennett, who had been a major disappointment since signing a $30 million free-agent contract two years ago. Bennett’s relieve is a wash, saving the team only $50,000 in cap space.

The Rams didn’t save much cap space by cutting Bennett, but there was no reason to hang onto him either. He was a gigantic bust since he arrived in St. Louis and could wind up back with Tennessee under coordinator Mike Heimerdinger.

Jets’ wide receiver Laveranues Coles took the opportunity to fire back at the media and everyone else who suggests the team’s turnaround this season has been all because of Brett Favre:

Jets’ WR Laveranues Coles took a couple of shots at QB Brett Favre leading up to today’s game vs. the San Francisco 49ers. Coles’ comments appear on a couple of San Francisco Bay-area web sites this morning and are getting some play on WFAN radio.

In an item on sfgate.com titled ‘Coles not a big Favre fan’, the veteran Jets’ receiver says the Jets’ offense is basically dictated by Favre and that passes delivered by Favre don’t come in any harder than the football-throwing machines the Jets use in practice:

“Day in and day out, I catch balls from the Jugs machine. It probably comes out there harder from there than it does anywhere else,” Coles said. “So there’s nothing different about (catching passes from Favre).”

InsideBayArea.com has another item on Coles, saying that Favre gets too much credit for the team’s success:

“If you understand the game, you understand that it’s more than just Brett Favre in dealing with this ballclub,” Coles said. “Of course, he’s the big name. He’s the (future) Hall of Famer and he’s going to get the majority of the credit. But most of the guys who deserve the credit don’t really get it.”

This is interesting because there’s an on-going debate right now in the comments section of John Paulsen’s latest column regarding whether or not the Packers would be better off with Favre under enter this season than Aaron Rodgers.

Here’s the thing, Brett Favre is only one player. He’s one hell of a player, but he’s only one player. The Jets added a couple of significant pieces this offseason and Favre was only one of those pieces. Alan Faneca has boosted the play of the offensive line, which has led to a bounce back year by running back Thomas Jones, which has aided Favre’s transition from Green Bay to New York. Kris Jenkins was also brought in to boost the run defense, which had been a major weakness until this season.

One player doesn’t make a team and while Coles sounds a little bitter that he’s not receiving the same love as Favre is, that’s just the way it goes. The media loves to praise a quarterback when a team wins and throw them directly under the bus when a team loses. If the Jets continue to implode, then everyone can rest assured that Brett’s going to come under some scrutiny.

The Jets not only handed the Tennessee Titans their first loss of the season – they made it look easy in the process, cruising to a 34-13 final.

Let’s not go overboard on this loss for the Titans and even remotely suggest that they’re overrated. They’ve looked outstanding for 10 weeks and every team is entitled to have a bad game. But this was quite an impressive win for the Jets, who lead the entire game and essentially did whatever they wanted to one of the best defenses in the league.

Jet Favre was amazing, completing 25 of 32 passes for 224 yards and two touchdowns, as were Thomas Jones and Leon Washington, who combined for 178 yards rushing and three scores. Laveranues Coles also finished with seven catches for 88 yards and one touchdown.

Though the Jets’ offense was awfully impressive, their defense was the key to victory. They completely took away the Titans’ running game and forced Kerry Collins to attempt 39 passes, which is never a good sign that things are right with Tennessee’s offense. Over the last couple years, the Jets had major issues stopping the run but games like this provide an example of how much they’ve improved in that area.

With Denver, San Fran, Buffalo, Seattle and Miami left on the schedule, the Jets are in great position to win the AFC East, although the Pats beat the Dolphins on Sunday so they remain just one game behind New York. This is going to be a great finish.

Brett Favre threw six touchdown passes and the Jets’ defense caused seven turnovers in New York’s 56-35 rout of the Cardinals on Sunday.

Favre had touchdown passes of 12, 34 and 2 yards as the Jets hung 34 points on Arizona in the second quarter. Favre then connected on scores of 17, 40 and 24 in the second half while announcers across the country tripped on themselves to utter the words, “That’s just classic Favre isn’t he? He always looks like he’s having fun!” (Seriously, I must have heard that line 42 times today.)

Laveranues Coles hauled in eight passes for 105 yards and three touchdowns while Jerricho Cotchery caught four passes for 67 yards and two scores. The Jets did absolutely whatever they wanted against a hapless Cardinals’ secondary, which had no clue on how to defense any New York receiver. The Jets improved to 2-2 on the year.

Despite completing 40 of 57 passes for 472 yards and two touchdowns, Kurt Warner’s poor play killed Arizona all day. Facing only a two-man rush midway threw the second quarter, Warner managed to throw an interception to Darrelle Revis, who baited him like a trout and returned the pick for a 32-yard touchdown pass. No-thumbs Warner also lost four fumbles, which means he contributed to six of Arizona’s seven turnovers.

In a scary moment late in the fourth quarter, Cards’ WR Anquan Boldin (10 rec., 119 yards, 1 TD) was crushed in between two defenders and appeared to lose conciseness for a moment. He was carted off the field, but it’s unclear at this point how serious the injury is. Arizona is now 2-2 on the season.

Jets 29 @ Chargers 48
LT2 was *supposed* to split touches with Darren Sproles, but when the lights were on, Tomlinson got 29 touches to Sproles’ seven. LT2 gained 87 total yards and scored twice…Sproles looked good gaining 77 yards on his seven touches…Phillip Rivers looked great once again, throwing for 250 yards, a TD and a pick. He’s really starting to look like an every week fantasy starter…Rivers spread the ball around to Vincent Jacskson (3-74), Craig Davis (3-43), Chris Chambers (1-27-1) and Antonio Gates (2-25-1). None of those guys had an outstanding game, which is what happens when the QB spreads it around…Brett Favre finished with good fantasy numbers (271 yards, 3 TD, 2 INT), but is still having regular miscommunication with his receivers. Still, Jerricho Cotchery (10-76), Laveranues Coles (6-75-1), Chansi Stuckey (6-42-1) and Dustin Keller (4-41-1) all had solid games. One thing’s for sure with Favre – if his team is behind early, he’s probably going to finish with a lot of yards and a few TD (along with a few picks)…Since the Jets trailed the entire game, Thomas Jones (12 touches, 54 yards) never really got it going.

Every week, I highlight a few players to start and a few players to sit at each position. I’m a firm believer in starting your studs, so I won’t tell you about how Drew Brees or LaDainian Tomlinson has a tough matchup – just go ahead and start them. I’ll focus on the borderline guys – players you’ll only start under the right circumstances. It’s important to note that depending on your roster and situation, you may not be able to follow these recommendations. For example, if I suggest you bench a solid starter like Ben Roethlisberger, only do so if you have a clearly better option on your bench.

START ‘EM

QB: Eli Manning (@ STL) has an excellent matchup with a Rams defense that allowed Donovan McNabb to throw for 361 yards and three TD last week. Also, Manning played better away from home last year, so the table is set for a very nice day…Phillip Rivers (@ DEN) has an interesting matchup against the Broncos, who looked great last week, but struggled against the pass last season. Rivers had a nice game in Week 1 against the Panthers, and he’ll probably have to throw the ball a lot to keep up with a dynamic Denver offense…Kurt Warner (vs. MIA) has a great matchup against a historically bad Dolphin defense that allowed 194 passing yards and two TD to Brett Favre and the Jets last week. Warner should be in for a nice day…Aaron Rodgers (@ DET) looked great on Monday night and faces a suspect Lions defense…For the desperate, Kerry Collins (@ CIN) has a great matchup with a Bengals secondary that has struggled to stop the pass over the last several years…For the super-desperate Joe Flacco (@ HOU) has a nice matchup as well.

RB: If Willis McGahee is out, Ray Rice (@ HOU) has a good matchup with a Texans defense that allowed a ton of yards to Willie Parker last week. If McGahee plays, we’re probably looking a split, which will hurt the value of both players…If Ryan Grant (@ DET) ends up playing, make sure he’s in your lineup (unless you have a far better option). The Lions gave up 220 rushing yards to Michael Turner and the Packers should find success in the ground game as well…Brandon Jacobs (@ STL) should find lots of running room against a bad Rams defense…Frank Gore (@ SEA), Willie Parker (@ CLE) and Marshawn Lynch (@ JAX) should have nice games as well.

WR: Jerricho Cotchery and Laveranues Coles (vs. NE) are good starts against a Pats defense that is struggling at CB…Santonio Holmes and Hines Ward (@ CLE) should be in your lineup since they face the Browns, who have been bad against he pass for the last few seasons…Make room in your lineup for Joey Galloway (vs. ATL) who has a good matchup with a suspect Falcons pass defense…Santana Moss (vs. NO) has a nice matchup with a Saints defense that gave up some points to a conservative Bucs offense last week.

SIT ‘EM

QB: David Garrard (vs. BUF) struggled last week and a hot Bills defense (that shut down Matt Hasselbeck and the Seattle offense) is coming to town…In the same game, Trent Edwards (@ JAX) doesn’t have a good matchup against a solid Jacskonville defense…Baltimore did a great job shutting down the Bengals’ high-octane passing game, and that doesn’t bode well for Matt Schaub (vs. BAL) and the rest of the Texans. I’d bench Schaub only if I had a solid option to go with.

RB: Jamal Lewis (vs. PIT) may find the running room is tough to find when he faces a good Steelers defense. He’s startable, but I’m not optimistic about his chances…Steve Slaton (vs. BAL) looks like he will get the start, but he faces a very tough Ravens defense. Bench him unless you are desperate…Neither DeAngelo Williams nor Jonathan Stewart are particularly good starts against a Chicago defense that is normally very stout against he run.

WR: Lee Evans (@ JAX) is startable, but I’m not optimistic about his chances against a good Jacksonville defense stinging from a loss against the Titans last week…Bernard Berrian and Sydney Rice (vs. IND) should probably be benched against a feisty Colts team that lost in Week 1. Adrian Peterson figures to have the most success against Indy.

DTBWW

Looking for a good defense to plug into your lineup this week? Welcome to the world of Defensive Team By Waiver Wire (DTBWW). Here are my picks for this week. (All teams are available in at least 40% of ESPN fantasy leagues.)

ARI (vs. MIA), KC (vs. OAK), HOU (vs. BAL) and OAK (@ KC)