After 10 seasons with the Cincinnati Bengals, when Chad Johnson moved to the New England Patriots in 2011, the move seemingly altered his public persona. Patriots under HC Bill Belichick was a franchise built entirely on conformity, fear of failure, and the absolute elimination of individual ego, and right from the get-go, Johnson was made aware of the expectations.

“I told you the first words Bill told me when I got there,” Johnson said on the Nightcap Podcast. “‘Hey Ocho, I’m glad to have you. It was awesome going against you over the years, but you know you have to change who you are to be here.’ And boy, from that day on, I was walking on eggshells amongst the other coaches.

“The funny thing about it is he didn’t have to tell me that because when you walk in, you already knew what time it was. Man, I took a backseat. I was quiet. I ain’t do no media… You hear the stories. Even though you’re not playing for the Patriots, you hear the stories, boy. Randy Moss coming off a 23-touchdown season, complaining about his contract. It was gone in 48 hours. You think I’m going to come in and act a fool.”

Before joining the Patriots, Chad Johnson was a loud, hyper-extroverted, and theatrical spectacle built entirely around self-promotion, relentless trash talk, and elaborate on-field celebrations. The former WR also gained attention by publicly mocking his opponents.

During the 2004 season, leading up to a Week 6 game against the Cleveland Browns, Johnson bought bottles of Pepto-Bismol and sent them directly to each of Cleveland’s starting defensive backs. In his pre-game media interviews, Johnson even admitted to the prank.

“I thought that would be a good idea… to send these guys some Pepto because I’m going to make them sick [trying to cover me],” he said.

For a veteran coach like Bill Belichick who preferred a tight-lipped locker room and demanded media silence, a personality like Johnson’s was seemingly a nightmare.

Knowing how rigid the Patriots were under Belichick, even Johnson didn’t argue with the expectations levied upon him immediately after joining the franchise.

He even referenced how Belichick and the Patriots handled Randy Moss when he wasn’t happy with the team’s decisions. Dating back to October 4, 2010, when New England faced the Miami Dolphins, after being held to zero catches, Moss grew frustrated and confronted then-offensive play-caller Bill O’Brien over his role in the offense.

Belichick eventually placed Moss on the trade block, sending him and a 2012 seventh-round pick to the Minnesota Vikings in exchange for a 2011 third-round draft pick.

Chad Johnson, who was well aware of the incident, wanted to avoid a similar outcome. He eventually spent a season with the Patriots under Belichick, where he rarely gave interviews and avoided public attention.