Allow Chad Ochocinco to keep talking, and eventually he can’t help it.
The loquacious star receiver of the Cincinnati Bengals, Ochocinco began his oratory on his matchup with Champ Bailey this week as if he were introducing the Broncos cornerback for induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
“He’s probably the best in the game, hands down,” Ochocinco told Cincinnati reporters this week. “When we talk about NFL corners, you talk about a complete corner, a defensive back coming out of college, if there’s something you want to aim to be like, if it’s not Deion (Sanders), it’s Champ.”
Ochocinco went off against Bailey in a 2004 game, catching seven passes for 149 yards that included a 50-yard touchdown. But Bailey held Ochocinco to only three catches for 32 yards in a late 2007 game.
It’s when Ochocinco recalled Bailey getting the better of their matchup that the fastest mouth in football couldn’t resist firing off a salvo.
“I’m looking to redeem myself and making him ‘kiss the baby,’ ” Ochocinco said. “We all know what that means.”
Of course. Kiss the baby. Take that, Champ!
“Whatever that means,” Bailey said. “I’ve been hearing that a lot lately too.”
Apparently “Kiss the baby” is slang for “It’s over.”
“The funny thing is he has respect for me and I have respect for him,” Bailey said. “It’s not like he’s talking to belittle you. He’s an entertainer. And he knows it. He uses that ability to talk to the fullest. He uses that to get to some people, but he knows he can’t get to me.”
