Former Cincinnati Bengals receiver Chad Johnson - aka Ochocinco - explained to CBS Sports' Chris Hassel that he supports current WR Tee Higgins' decision to change his jersey number after the 2022 season to No. 5 from No. 85, which Johnson wore throughout his 11-season NFL career.
"I mean, it's cool. I like it," Johnson said. "I like it. Obviously, wanting to have his own identity and create his own identity with the Bengals is a good thing. It's a good thing. Obviously, wearing the (No.) 85 - some of the stuff I've done throughout the years - you will always be compared to or associated with, you know, with myself. But it's pretty cool. He's gonna look good in that (No.) 5. And it's the number he wore when he went to college."
Video from @CBSSportsHQ via Twitter:
Higgins said in Sept. 2021 that he would switch from No. 85 to No. 5 - the number he wore in high school and college - after the 2021 season. In June, he said he'll make the switch instead after the upcoming season, to avoid having to spend a lot of buying out the NFL's supply of Higgins No. 85 jerseys.
"I just feel like Chad has done so much for this organization," Higgins said in 2021, per The Enquirer's Kelsey Conway. "I just have a good feeling his number is going to get lifted one day. I just want to make a name for myself. I keep seeing on Twitter (people say I am) 'Ochocinco 2.0.' I don’t want to be a 2.0. No disrespect to Chad. He's a great receiver. I don't want to be a 2.0 for myself. I want to be Tee Higgins 1.0, No. 5 and go out there and make a name for myself and this organization."
Tee Higgins: How a quiet kid from Oak Ridge, Tennessee, became a Cincinnati Bengals star
Higgins' teammate, Ja'Marr Chase, finished his rookie season for the Bengals with 1,455 receiving yards, breaking Johnson's Bengals' single-season, receiving-yardage record.
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