“You Should Be Crying”: Shannon Sharpe Doesn’t Hold Back On Chad Johnson Bursting Into Tears After Bengals 3-28 Loss To the Broncos

Unsurprisingly, the Cincinnati Bengals’ season is nosediving without Joe Burrow. On Monday night, they were thoroughly dismantled by the Denver Broncos, falling 28–3 in a game that exposed just how lost they look without their franchise quarterback. For many Bengals fans and ex-players like Chad Johnson, the result was very painful.

What made Ocho’s grief extra intense, however, was the fact that in the lead-up to the matchup, he had been bullish about the Bengals’ chances, even telling Broncos legend Shannon Sharpe to prepare himself for disappointment. But by the final whistle, the tables had completely turned.

The Broncos’ defense feasted on Jake Browning and a Bengals offense that couldn’t move the ball. As a result, Chad Johnson’s former team managed just 159 total yards, punted eight times, four of them after three-and-outs, and advanced past midfield only once, on their opening drive.

Such was the one-sided nature of the game that even Ja’Marr Chase was held to five catches for 23 yards. His partner-in-crime, Tee Higgins, also had just 32, with the Bengals’ only points coming from a lone field goal in the first half.

Meanwhile, Bo Nix threw for 326 yards, and J.K. Dobbins added 101 on the ground as the Broncos rolled up over 500 yards of offense.

This harrowing performance after the Vikings’ shocking 48-10 rout of the Bengals in Week 3 was enough to break Chad Johnson’s spirit on the latest edition of Nightcap. He couldn’t fight back tears live on the show as he was literally bawling his eyes out.

Even when the ex-Bengals WR tried to reassure himself by saying, “We gonna be all right,” Sharpe cut him off immediately. “No, no, don’t cry. Uh-uh. Don’t let it fool you. You should be crying,” he jabbed, before twisting the knife further: “No, y’all ain’t [gonna be all right]. Next year maybe, but y’all ain’t gonna be all right this year.”

As brutal as the ex-NFL TE’s words were, he reminded his co-host that Bengals fans had put their faith in the roster, only for it to collapse without Burrow. “You don’t got them people. You have people in Cincinnati believing in you, man,” he said, emphasizing how the last thing Chad Johnson should do is give Bengals fans false hope.

That said, once the taunting subsided, Chad Johnson’s frustration boiled over. He turned his attention to Shannon Sharpe and the Broncos fans celebrating the win, unleashing a rant that perfectly captured his anguish:

“The fact that y’all are even happy about this win, Joe Burrow-less Bengals. You happy about that? We got a backup quarterback who couldn’t do much tonight, an offensive line holding up the yin-yang, pre-snap penalties everywhere. We got the best duo of receivers in the NFL and we can’t get them the ball. And then you come on here happy, giggling?”

It was a meltdown fitting of the Bengals’ night: hopeless, emotional, and raw. But the reality remains for Chad Johnson that the Broncos’ rout was a reminder that Cincinnati, without Burrow, looks nothing like a contender.

Safe to say, with their talisman out for 3 months+, it’s gonna be a very long season for Bengals fans. Nightcap fans better subscribe because Ocho can have a lot of crying moments this season.