A.J. Green left Sunday’s loss to the Ravens early with a hamstring injury, and he walked off the field showing clear frustration. Some viewers thought they saw Green tell an assistant that the Bengals should trade him if they won’t use him properly, but the wide receiver says that’s not the case. 
“I’m just happy to be back out there,” said Green (Twitter link via Ben Baby of ESPN.com). “I know it’s going to come over time. . . . I don’t want them to force me anything.”
There was tension between Green and the Bengals this offseason as the veteran lobbied for an extension. But, after he missed the entire year with injury, the Bengals decided to table discussions with the 32-year-old. Instead, they used the one-year, ~$18MM tag to keep him for 2020. The two sides cannot resume talks until after the season is over.
Before last year, Green was a Pro Bowler in each of his first seven NFL seasons. And, in every season in which he’s played at least 13 games, he’s topped 1,000 yards receiving. So far this year, he has just 14 grabs for 119 yards through five games. Now, it sounds like he’ll be out for a while as he nurses a hamstring issue, but he hopes to remain in Cincinnati beyond the deadline.
The trade deadline falls a bit later than usual this year. Teams will have up until 4pm ET/3pm CT on Nov. 3 – which is also Election Day — to make deals.
AKA get me the eff outta here.
If anything he should be grateful…no other team was going to pay him $18M
Right!?
AJ Green will come around. People forget how good he actually was. He may not be what he once was but if he gets back to 75% of what he was it’s still better than average in the league.
He’s getting a lot targets but not a lot of catches. Something is up. However, I do love his work.
Said every player before they get traded or released.
Come to New England! We’ve got the cap space.
He has a lot of targets, and not a lot of catches, however a good amount of that is on Burrow too. Green has had the most overthrown or uncatchable targets from Burrow and he hasn’t really been looking for him. When he does, it’s a target here and a target there.
He may have lost a step, but Green should still be able to make contested catches if Burrow can put them in a spot to give him a chance. I think Green will has a couple of “vintage AJ” games coming before the end of the season, provided Burrow gets him involved.
Burrow is probably latching onto Green because AJ used to be an elite receiver and Joe likely identified him as a safety valve. While Green has been victim to some poorly thrown balls, be does not look like the player he once was. That interception last week was partly on him for giving up on the route and he has been a complete no-show in multiple games. Besides, Boyd doesn’t seem to have had any trouble adjusting.
I have always respected Green as a hard-working and overlooked receiver, but he really doesn’t look focused this year. Either injuries have caught up to him or he’s desperate to escape the organization. With players like Boyd, Higgins, and even Tate emerging as viable wideouts, Green probably isn’t returning next season. Hopefully he proves me wrong, but the results do not look promising thus far
A.J. Green should go to a contender team. Bengals are on a re-build stage and it’s gonna take 3-5 years of losing seasons. These are some AFC and NFC teams he’s got a shot for a Super Bowl appearance or win. In the AFC Bills, Steelers, Chiefs, Ravens, Patriots, Browns, Colts, and Titans. In the NFC Cowboys, Packers, Bears, Buccaneers, Saints, Seahawks, Cardinals, and Rams. He has a shot with some of these teams for a playoff or Super Bowl.
Alshon Jeffrey for green
He is one of those genuine players. He doesnt want to play for another team. He has been there since the start of his NFL journey. Has he lost a step, it’s hard to say with the hammy injury. Those always linger. However, I do agree this is the last season we see him in Bengal stripes.