Chad Finds Some Attention

[Hache Man]

Chad Finds Some Attention
While Terrell Owens may have taken center stage this week, there's little doubt that Chad Johnson remains King of the Loudmouth Wide Receivers. Johnson has had an impressive run leading up to this week's matchup with New England, first getting coach Bill Belichick to uncharacteristically play back at him in the media and then getting Rodney Harrison to all-too-characteristically do the same.

The normally tight-lipped Belichick quipped to reporters Wednesday that they should "Tell [Johnson] that we'd cover him one-on-one all the time but he pushes off more than any receiver in the league. He must be paying off the officials not to call it, so we're going to have to double-cover him some, not that he can get open." Belichick then ruined the fun by proceeding to call Johnson "a good guy" and "entertaining kid."

Harrison took on the cause Thursday, saying Johnson's trash talking "is kind of similar to the Freddie Mitchell gig, but Chad's not at that level of receiver." Harrison then added that Johnson's "not as good as Freddie, because at least Freddie played in the Super Bowl." Like Belichick, Harrison then showed he was joking by saying "Chad's a baller and Freddie's a bum."

While it's sad that no one gets roped into taking Johnson seriously anymore, Harrison's unique ability to go from insulting one person to complimenting them by insulting another person—known in some circles as "The Don Rickles Effect"—is impressive. Meanwhile, lost in all the talk is that Johnson managed one measly catch for 11 yards in Week 3, so he should probably just shut up for a while anyway.

While Chad Johnson contemplates his place in life now that he's been compared to Freddie Mitchell, here are some other notes from around football …

* Odd as it may sound, the local media covering the Packers appear to have the best information on Brian Westbrook's health heading into Week 4. Seriously. Westbrook is listed as questionable on the injury report because of ongoing knee problems, but multiple Wisconsin newspapers reported Friday that they were told during a conference call with coach Andy Reid that Westbrook will play Monday night against the Packers.

While that news certainly doesn't make Westbrook a sure thing, it should come as a relief after Westbrook missed practice Thursday. Westbrook has played through knee problems in the past and no one seems overly concerned that this time around is any different, so count on having him in Week 4. His value will depend largely on whether or not the Eagles can blow the Packers out.

Of course, Westbrook amazingly managed 164 yards and three touchdowns on just 12 touches in a blowout win over the 49ers Sunday, so maybe not. Despite having slightly more carries on the year than Chester Taylor had in the season opener, Westbrook enters this week as the NFL's ninth-leading rusher and leads the league in yards from scrimmage with an average of 140 per game.

*At first glance, the statements coach Romeo Crennel made about Kellen Winslow's injured knee appear to be pretty discouraging. Crennel said Thursday that Winslow, who missed practice that morning and has been dealing with scar tissue in the knee, may never be fully healthy. "He goes out on Sunday and plays very hard on it," Crennel said. "Then it's sore the rest of the week. You have to manage the situation."

While that's certainly not a positive development, it's worth noting that whatever health problems Winslow has had still enabled him to rack up 19 catches for 197 yards and a touchdown in the Browns' first three games, including seven grabs for 92 yards last week. And that's after missing most of 2004 and all of 2005 with serious injuries, so he's surely a bit rusty.

Winslow may remain a slight risk because he figures to be listed on the injury report most weeks, but there's little doubt that he's now a legitimate TE1 option in most leagues. His fantasy stock has gone from nearly being off the radar to skyrocketing, and there are few tight ends with more keeper-league value. For the short term, he has a good matchup with Oakland Sunday, making him an easy top-10 tight end for Week 4.

Two-Minute Drill: Putting a dent in the perception of prayer's ability to heal football players, Shaun Alexander (foot) has officially been ruled out for this week … Reggie Wayne returned to practice Thursday after leaving the team following the death of his brother and is expected to play in Week 4 … T.J. Duckett has been reduced to working on special teams just to have a chance at making the active roster for games … John Gilmore already has a two-touchdown game this season and may start in place of Desmond Clark in Week 4, but don't expect him to have much fantasy impact … Healthy of not, if Chris Brown and Travis Henry split carries this week neither of them will have much fantasy value.

Red Zone: Trent Green (concussion) is expected to miss at least two more games and an official timetable for his return has yet to be established … T.J. Houshmandzadeh (heel) practiced Thursday for the first time this season, making him a safe fantasy play … Laveranues Coles (calf) missed practice again Thursday, making it likely that he'll be a game-time decision for the second straight week … Mark Brunell (elbow) looks likely to play this week after throwing passes near the end of practice Thursday, but his matchup against Jacksonville means he's a poor fantasy play anyway … Chester Taylor (ankle) is listed as probable, but you can be sure that the man who has gotten 87 percent of the Vikings' carries will play Sunday and get another heavy workload … Mike Vanderjagt is expected to be a game-time decision this week, which means you can safely look elsewhere for kicking help.