Chad “Ochocinco” Johnson put up big numbers and made six Pro Bowls, yet 15 years after retiring, he’s still waiting on that Hall of Fame call. While his wait continues, an old incident involving him comes back into the picture. It’s one of those classic Ochocinco moments fans still can’t forget, when he tried to “bribe the referee” in a game against the Baltimore Ravens, and he has a reason for doing so.

“I needed that catch to hit an incentive in my contract,” Johnson posted on X.

He even posted a photo from the 2009 game showing Ochocinco on the field, standing near a referee during a replay review, holding a $1 bill he had pulled from his sock. In the caption, he joked that he wanted incentives. Looking back at his contract, he was signed to a six-year, $35.5 million extension with Cincinnati, making approximately $5.8 million annually.

While he put it as needing that catch for his incentive bonus now, he had already explained himself in the past.

“I was just being me,” Ochocinco told the NFL Network after the game. “I wasn’t going to do it for real.”

The moment happened in the third quarter of the Bengals’ win over the Ravens on November 8, 2009. Cincinnati quarterback Carson Palmer completed a 15-yard pass to Ochocinco, but Baltimore challenged the play, arguing he had stepped out of bounds. The Ravens ended up winning the challenge.

While the play was being reviewed, Ochocinco held the $1 bill at his side. One of the officials seemed to notice and waved him off right away. The league did not take it lightly.

According to league spokesman Ray Anderson, the NFL’s executive vice president of football operations, Ochocinco was fined for violating a rule that “prohibits use of abusive, threatening or insulting language or gestures toward game officials.” He also broke Rule 12, Section 3, Article 1 (f), which does not allow players to have or use objects that are not part of the uniform during a game.

The NFL also mentioned that Ochocinco used the word “bribe” when speaking to reporters after the game, per ESPN.

What started as a joke on the field quickly turned into a public issue and cost him money. Chad Ochocinco was fined $20,000 for flashing a dollar bill at an official during the replay challenge.

Honestly, it wasn’t the only time Ocho had to pay a fine. Ochocinco always knew how to put on a show, even if it meant paying for it later.

Chad Johnson was fined multiple times

In December 2009, Chad Johnson was again fined $30,000 for putting on a mock poncho and sombrero near the bench after scoring a touchdown in a 23-13 win over the Detroit Lions.

That fine was actually $10,000 more than what he got earlier that season for pretending to bribe a referee during a game.

Ochocinco said he did not really understand why the fine was higher.

“That’s OK,” said Ochocinco, confirming that he has kept $100,000 to pay fines for the season. “They keep jacking them up, I’ll keep jacking up the celebrations.”

Throughout his career, he became known for creative and funny celebrations. Fans still remember him doing a river dance, pretending to give CPR to a football, and using the end zone pylon like a golf club. He even once put on a mock Hall of Fame jacket on the sideline.

Over time, those moments added up in fines. He was fined $25,000 for tweeting during a game, $20,000 for wearing gold cleats against Pittsburgh, $10,000 for repeated chinstrap violations by late 2009, and more. According to Spotrac, his official fines went over $115,000.

Still, in true Ochocinco fashion, he later joked that the real number was much higher. On The Late Run podcast, he said fines may have cost him more than $5 million over his career, even joking that he should have gotten a stake in Inter Miami for all that money.

For him, it was all part of the game. The celebrations, the fines, and the entertainment all went together.