Will the Titans put their Money where their Mouth is for Chris Johnson?

What exactly will happen with Chris Johnson? No one seems to know yet, not him or the General Manager, Mike Reinfeldt; but there certainly is a lot being said. The rumor is that Johnson wants a deal giving him $30 million guaranteed and many, such as ex-Titan running back, Eddie George, think that he should get it. But management is giving very mixed signals, saying that they are eager to sign Johnson’s extension that was promised in 2010, but that they want Johnson to come to training camp first. Johnson, on the other hand, says that he hasn’t been offered a deal yet and that while there may be talks in the works, no offer has reached him yet.

Management is pretty insistent that Johnson come to camp in order for them to finalize a deal, but they’re not giving up just how much that deal is going to be for. Reinfeldt stated that, “Even though he has two years left on his contract, we’d like him to go in [to training camp.] Again, we’re willing to make him the highest-paid running back in the history of the NFL.” And if they’re planning on penning a deal with Johnson that gives him the cool $30 mil he’s asking for, that’s just what he’ll be.

But the problem is, no one knows if that’s actually what they’re offering him — not even Johnson. And it sounds like the running back is going to need an actual number before appearing. Upon hearing talks that the Tennessee Titans were planning on making him the highest paid RB in NFL history, he commented, “I am surprised. Neither me nor (agent) Joel (Segal) have received any offer from the Titans. Maybe they talked, but I guarantee we never received any offer.”  The frustrated reply may indicate that the Titans may really have to put their money where their mouth is, if they expect to see Johnson at camp.

We’ll keep a lookout for an update on this and let you know you…stay tuned.

Categorized in: NFL