Chad OchoCinco has a 4 day tryout next week for MLS Sporting KC. What chances do you give him for earning a spot with the club?

As much chance as Donovan making the Bengals

soccerdad1 wrote:As much chance as Donovan making the Bengals

Didn't Tony Meola once try out with the New York Jets?

Saw this follow up to the story today. Went about as we expected, but I thought Chad had some respectful and good things to say about the whole experience.


According to the Kansas City Star, the Bengals wide receiver impressed coach Peter Vermes in his second day of workouts on Thursday. The tryout was originally slated to end for Ochocinco on Saturday, and many observers speculated that he would not last more than one day.

Though Vermes all but admitted that Ochocinco will not make the team, he said the six-time NFL Pro Bowler showed marked improvement from his first day on Wednesday.

"First off, (the game at this level is) definitely above him," Vermes told NFL.com on Thursday.

"And it's something that's maybe a little surprising to him, how fast the game is and how athletic and technical the guys are with the speed of play. ... I won't say I didn't expect it. I knew this was going to be a little of a long shot for him. I haven't made all my conclusions -- he'll be back (Friday) and will train Saturday -- but these guys (on Sporting) have been doing it every day on a regular basis."

Ochocinco, in a video posted Thursday on the team's website, said he is "not delusional" that he will be able to stick with the club, but said he's "having fun."

"It takes extreme skill to play at this level. ... I have (enhanced) respect for the game and what they're able to do. I think people need to understand: An elite athlete like myself, it takes more than just being athletic to come play at a level like this."

Ochocinco hit back Thursday through Twitter at critics who have accused him of using the tryout as another publicity stunt, including Packers tight end Jermichael Finley who called him a "clown."

"(Shout out) to everyone who has a negative opinion pertaining to me. And (shout out) to me for consistently being able to NOT GIVE A (expletive)!", he tweeted.

The 33-year-old, who grew up playing soccer in Miami, said he wanted to use the lockout as an opportunity to fulfill a "childhood dream" of playing professional soccer.

Heard he was invited to play with the reserves. Club is smart . Keep the interest up!!

plantit wrote:

Heard he was invited to play with the reserves. Club is smart . Keep the interest up!!

I saw a little bit of the practice on the news and he didnt look balanced.. I hope it works out for him..

fuzzy taco wrote:

plantit wrote:

Heard he was invited to play with the reserves. Club is smart . Keep the interest up!!

I saw a little bit of the practice on the news and he didnt look balanced.. I hope it works out for him..

If not, he can be the official tatoo consultant for the MLS

#85 played soccer at one point in his youth, fun to see him give him a shot and some publicity to MLS team.

It's a slow time in the NFL, so why not pull a publicity stunt taking a shot at the arguement that soccer is a game any athlete can play.


What Chad learned is that he is not quite a star at either form of football and that skills are just as important as general athleticism. It takes years of training to develop a soccer player. Just because you're an athlete doesn't equate to success on the pitch. Nice try, though. Appreciate the media attention.

finish1 wrote:It's a slow time in the NFL, so why not pull a publicity stunt taking a shot at the arguement that soccer is a game any athlete can play.

My bb is definitely enjoying laying soccer style hits on all the football boys who made his 8th grade soccer team this year at school. Funny how they think they're so tough but when they're laying on the ground after a true soccer style hit. They're somewhat saying the exact same thing...

finish1 wrote:It's a slow time in the NFL, so why not pull a publicity stunt taking a shot at the arguement that soccer is a game any athlete can play.


What Chad learned is that he is not quite a star at either form of football and that skills are just as important as general athleticism. It takes years of training to develop a soccer player. Just because you're an athlete doesn't equate to success on the pitch. Nice try, though. Appreciate the media attention.

why the hate?

I think one point that could be derived from this experiment is not so much what Ochocinco currently is as a soccer player, but what he and other American athletes like him could have been if they would have stayed with soccer through their high school and college years. Not saying he should have, but wouldn't it be great if at least a decent percentage of our country's really elite athletes would be soccer players. MLS and USMNT players are definitely great athletes for the most part, but what if 25% of the truly elite were playing soccer? Won't happen in our lifetimes due to financial considerations, but how fun would it be to watch if some of these studs were playing futbol instead of football.

No matter if you like him coming out to the pitch or not, at least soccer made it on ESPN more in the last few days than possibly ever before! Publicity for the sport never hurts!