Chad Johnson may have lost both his job with the Miami Dolphins and his show on VH1, but he's still going to get some quality TV airtime on Tuesday night.
According to multiple reports, the HBO series Hard Knocks, which is currently documenting the Dolphins' training camp, will show footage of Dolphins head coach Joe Philbin meeting with the controversial wide receiver before he was released from the team on Sunday.
Ben Volin, who covers the Dolphins for the Palm Beach Post, wrote on his Twitter account (@BenVolinPBP) Tuesday, "Must-see TV: HBO is going to show footage of Philbin meeting with Chad Johnson just before releasing him."
Johnson was arrested on Saturday after being arrested on domestic violence charges for allegedly headbutting wife Evelyn Lozada. The 11-year NFL veteran was released from the Dolphins one day later, and on Monday, it was announced that VH1 is pulling the reality series Ev and Ocho, a spinoff of Basketball Wives that would document their preparations for their July 4 wedding. The series is already filmed, but under the circumstances, VH1 chose not to air it.
The 34-year-old Johnson is coming off his worst NFL season, catching 15 passes for 276 yards and one touchdown in 15 games for the New England Patriots in his last season under the name "Chad Ochocinco." The Patriots released him on June 7, and Johnson signed with the Dolphins four days later. He changed his name back to Johnson on July 24, and was hoping to recapture the form he displayed under that name, as his two First Team All-Pro selections (2005 and 2006) both came before his 2008 name change to Ochocinco.
If Johnson is ever going to reclaim that form, it won't be in Miami, and on Tuesday night, fans will be able to see just how it ended.
As ESPN NFL insider Adam Schefter put it on his Twitter account, "Ratings for HBO's Hard Knocks tonight will be sky high with footage of Joe Philbin meeting with and releasing @ochocinco."
