Sonstiges » Duke Johnson came to Browns camp and made his feelings clear.

BEREA Will Grier Jersey , Ohio (AP) —“I want to be somewhere I’m wanted,” he said.Johnson doubled down on his demand to be traded Tuesday, saying he felt betrayed by Browns general manager John Dorsey, who began shopping the running back to other teams shortly after signing free agent Kareem Hunt.The 25-year-old Johnson skipped the team’s voluntary offseason programs in protest, but reported for the Browns’ three-day mandatory minicamp. Moments after the team completed a morning walk-through, Johnson addressed the media for the first time since requesting his trade.He didn’t pull any punches.“I’m big on loyalty,” said the versatile Johnson, whose role was reduced last season following the arrival of rookie Nick Chubb. “I’ve felt as I’ve been loyal to this organization through it all, and the moment that I no longer have loyalty — and that’s even in my personal life, friends, family, the moment the loyalty stops, it stops on both ends. It’s not a one-way street. It stops on my end.“Will that stop me from doing my job? Of course not. That’s not going to stop me. Me being upset and me being still wanting to be traded is not going to stop me from coming out here and performing at a high level.”The Browns signed Hunt in February, taking on the controversial back who will serve an eight-game NFL suspension for physical altercations. Johnson’s agent asked Dorsey to trade him in March upon learning the team was already trying to move him.“I was put on the trade block a month before I requested a trade,” said Johnson, who had a career low in carries (40) and receptions (47) last season. “That’s essentially my biggest issue. Again Christian Miller Jersey , my role since I’ve been on this team hasn’t been big for four years, not just last year. It hasn’t been for four years, and, again, I didn’t ask for a trade, didn’t complain, just came out and did my job.”Johnson didn’t look distracted on disgruntled during Tuesday’s two-hour practice, which included the return of wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. “He ran hard, made some catches and looked like the same player who has caught at least 47 passes in each of his four seasons.Early in practice, Browns coach Freddie Kitchens put his arm around Johnson and the two had a quiet conversation. A year ago, Kitchens was Johnson’s position coach.Kitchens doesn’t think Johnson’s play will suffer.“Duke practiced today, and he practiced hard,” Kitchens said. “I expect Duke to be a professional, and I think he will be. He’s never been anything but a professional. Whatever his personal feelings are, those are his personal feelings. I’m not going to dictate someone’s feelings. Duke’s a part of the team. All the other stuff is just hyperbole.“I don’t know inventing. I don’t know imagining, or thinking or reacting or something like that. Just because we signed another good player doesn’t mean somebody else has to get traded. I mean Jordan Scarlett Jersey , I love good players, and we’ve got some good players. Now we’ve just got to come together as a team, and I have a good feeling Duke will do that.”Although he may be at odds with the front office, Johnson, who endured 1-15 and 0-16 seasons, vowed not to be a distraction to his teammates.“I was here when we were 0-16,” said Johnson, a third-round pick in 2015. “I was all-in then. Nothing changes now. At the end of the day, I’m a professional, and again, since I’ve been here, you’ve not once heard about me not wanting to be here from coaches, players, anyone or just my attitude and being disgruntled.“Last year, I was frustrated, at most David Montgomery Jersey , but as far as just being upset and not doing my job because of my feelings, you never heard of it, and you probably never will. I’m here to do a job, and I’m going to do that job for as long as I’m here.”Johnson feels he has the support of his teammates.However, quarterback Baker Mayfield doesn’t seem to be in his corner.“Obviously, he’s going to handle his stuff how he wants, but you’re either on this train or you’re not. It’s moving,” Mayfield said. “You can get out of the way or you can join us. So it is what it is.”Mayfield disagreed that Johnson’s situation is awkward.“It’s not awkward,” he said. “It’s self-inflicted. It’s not awkward for anybody else in this building. He’s got to do his job. He said he’s a professional. I hope he does his job.” CINCINNATI (AP)The assistant head coach is gone, but head coach Marvin Lewis is coming back for a 16th try at a playoff victory. And so it goes in Cincinnati. In a what-have-you-done-lately league, the Bengals remain the outlier. Lewis met with the media on Wednesday, a day after getting a two-year extension through 2019, and talked in general terms about how his team needs to change. Better players. Better coaching. Better performance. All the things he’s said many times during the second-longest active coaching tenure in the NFL, behind only Bill Belichick. Unlike the New England coach, who has five Super Bowl titles, Lewis has yet to win a playoff game. But owner Mike Brown hates change and was willing to give Lewis yet another chance after yet another futile season. The 82-year-old owner didn’t attend the news conference – he rarely addresses the media – so it was left to Lewis to explain why he was still there. ”You’re going to have to start from scratch regardless Riley Ridley Jersey , so you might as well start from scratch with someone you understand, you know,” Lewis said. ”Everybody can always look at what’s negative from it, but the only way we can go about it and do it positive is to get back to work and go about it.” One change: Lewis wanted more control over the coaching staff and evidently got it. Paul Alexander, the assistant head coach and offensive line coach for 23 seasons, was let go. Bill Lazor, who was elevated to offensive coordinator after an 0-2 start last season, will remain in the role and get a chance to redesign the NFL’s worst offense in the offseason. Defensive coordinator Paul Guenther will interview for the job with the Raiders, making it likely Lewis will have to find a replacement. Lewis has defied the odds and kept his job, and he’s not the only odds-beater in Ohio. The 0-16 Browns have retained head coach Hue Jackson for another season as well. The Browns and Bengals have played a total of 64 games the past two seasons and won 14 collectively, yet neither team is changing head coaches. Must be something in that icy Lake Erie and Ohio River water. In Cincinnati, fans were still trying to wrap their heads around Marvin Lewis 16.0, with a few upgrades to fix some of the many bugs in the program. Lewis said Brown wants to win a championship, and that’s why he decided to keep Lewis in charge despite his record so far. Lewis is 0-7 in the playoffs, an NFL record for coaching futility. His teams lost five straight opening-round games from 2011-15, another record. The Bengals haven’t won a playoff game since the 1990 season Greedy Williams Jersey , the sixth-longest streak of futility in league history. Brown decided that Lewis was the best choice, regardless of what’s happened in the past 15 years. ”I tell people when you go to a car lot, you know what you’re looking for and they’re not going to sway you one way or another, that’s what you’re going to do,” Lewis said. ”I believe that about (NFL owners).” During the news conference, a media member relayed questions from fans, including one from a woman named Betty Lou at a chili parlor in northern Kentucky about the team’s commitment to winning. One of Lewis’ jobs in his latest incarnation will be trying to win back Betty Lou and many other fans who gave up on him. Bengals’ attendance plummeted last season to one of the lowest in the league. They had 10,000 empty seats for a home game against the rival Steelers. Paul Brown Stadium was half-empty for the final home game. Bringing Lewis back and rearranging the staff won’t create a surge in ticket sales. Brown chose to stay in his comfort zone rather than trying something different. ”I think sometimes there’s a tendency to think that the grass is greener, and it doesn’t necessarily end up that way often,” Lewis said, referring to NFL owners. ”So I think if they feel good about the relationship they have and where they’re headed that way, I think it’s a little different that way.” —