Chad ‘Ocho Cinco’ Johnson Rebuffed From Wearing New Name On Jersey… By Reebok?

When we found out that the Cincinatti Bengals wide receiver Chad Johnson had officially changed his name to Chad Ocho Cinco in honor of his great numerical ancestry, we thought it was the end of the story. This crazy SOB had changed his name, and they’ll put it on his jersey, and we’ll all have a chuckle. But it seems that the last laugh may be the NFL’s because they didn’t let Chad wear his jersey with his new surname on it. Why? Because even though he’s now recognized by the federal government as Chad Ocho Cinco, there’s a greater entity than that when it comes to the NFL, and that’s one of their main sponsors–in this case, Reebok who still has a crapload of “Johnson 85″ jerseys to sell before Chad can make the switch.

Contacted Sunday by The Associated Press, NFL spokesman Greg Aiello said, “He has a financial obligation to Reebok, which produces the jerseys available to fans. That has to be resolved before the on-field jersey can be changed. The same obligation exists for any player that changes his number or name.”

“He’s legally changed his name, so we’re willing to recognize that…” [NFL commissioner Roger] Goodell said. “Any player that changes a number or changes his name has to address that so that our licensing is not stuck with a large inventory. That’s just something we’re dealing with. As far as we’re concerned, if he changes his name legally, that’s fine with us.”

Wow. If that doesn’t support the idea of players as property, we don’t know what does. Will the league make Tom Brady wear an NFL-licensed knee brace, even if it doesn’t fit?
For now, Chad Johnson can’t wear Ocho Cinco [Yahoo]
Image [AP]