MIAMI – A source close to NFL wide receiver Chad Johnson (formerly Chad Ochocinco) says his family is “heartbroken” over his weekend arrest for domestic violence against wife of less than two months, reality star Evelyn Lozada, and about his separation from the Miami Dolphins.
The family was “so happy” when Johnson, who changed his last name to Ochocinco as a play on his jersey number, 85, when he signed with the Dolphins earlier this year after being released from the New England Patriots, a family friend told theGrio. Now, “he’s out of work.” The Dolphins terminated Johnson’s $975,000 a year contract following his arrest Saturday on misdemeanor battery charges.
“We all had high hopes. He was with the team of his choice, he was finally back home,” the friend said. Johnson grew up in Miami Beach, and was a star football player on the Miami Beach Senior High School football team. “He’s always wanted to be Miami Dolphin — it’s the highlight of his career. He’s 34 years old.”
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“It’s heartbreaking for the entire family,” the family friend said, adding that Johnson’s grandmother, who recently was released from the hospital following a fall, is “heartbroken” over the arrest and Johnson being fired by the Dolphins.
The family friend said the family was initially skeptical of Johnson’s relationship with Lozada, who stars in the reality show “Basketball Wives,” and who was set to star in a new reality series with her husband, whom she married on July 4th, but that they fully accepted her into the family.
The family friend said Johnson seemed to be attracted to Lozada because she “challenged him,” adding, “Evelyn is drop dead gorgeous. TV does her no justice.”
And the friend added that Johnson indicated to family members, after being released from jail on $2,500 bond Sunday, that he hopes to reconcile with Lozada.
TheGrio: Is domestic violence dispute the end of the line for Chad Johnson?
“I think he got caught up in the hype,” the family friend said of Johnson’s sudden fame. He was signed by the Bengals in 2001, but his star rose in the last year, particularly when he began dating Lozada. “And like a lot of kids, all of a sudden you’re a superstar, you’re a millionaire. It’s a lot.” Johnson reportedly didn’t drink, and the friend said he wasn’t even known to curse, though in recent weeks he was disciplined by the Dolphins for using foul language.
The friend said the family isn’t blaming Lozada for Johnson’s troubles.
“Did the family embrace Evelyn? Absolutely, because that was his choice,” the friend said. “Were they wondering, is this gonna work? Absolutely. Who wouldn’t be concerned?”
“They just feel like both of them made bad choices,” the friend added, noting that Johnson has claimed Lozada struck him first, after discovering a receipt from a local drugstore with a condom purchase on it.
According to the police report, Lozada claims Johnson head-butted her during an argument as they sat in a car. She reportedly has lacerations on her head. She later fled to a neighbor’s house, while he drove around their Davie neighborhood looking for her, the police report said.
“They’re blaming both of them for letting tempers escalate. From her reputation on TV, she’s known as a hothead, but now it doesn’t matter. A guy with a promising future is now unemployed. A career has been severed. And all of this after just six weeks of marriage. It’s just horrible,” said theGrio’s source.
Follow Joy Reid on Twitter at @thereidreport.