BEREA -Kevin Johnson joked that he's worried about walking toward the wrong locker room on Sunday. He's sure he'll find the right sideline, though. It'll be the one opposite where Butch Davis is standing.
Johnson, released last season by Davis, will make his first visit to Cleveland as a visiting player when the Baltimore Ravens open the season against the Browns.
It's going to be pretty strange
Johnson said.
So, too, were the circumstances surrounding Johnson's release last November. Davis suddenly dumped the Browns' leading receiver from 1999-2002 without getting anything in return.
At the time, the Browns cited Johnson's selfishness as the primary reason for letting him go. Those assertions still pain Johnson, who finished last season with Jacksonville before being traded to Baltimore on draft day.
In Johnson's mind, his unceremonious release was caused by one man: Butch Davis.
Everybody knows why it happened Johnson said. I hated the way my character was questioned and who I was as a person. It was going to happen sooner or later. He (Davis) had total control. He and I never saw eye to eye.
Selected by the expansion Browns with their second overall pick in 1999, Johnson was the club's most productive offensive player for four seasons, catching 315 passes for 3,836 yards and 23 touchdowns. He also started 72 of 74 games in Cleveland.
But all of Johnson's previous accomplishments seemed to mean little to Davis, who became irritated when the wideout complained about his contract before the 2002 season and grumbled about not getting the ball enough last year.
Johnson didn't directly criticize Davis during a teleconference with Cleveland reporters on Wednesday, but without naming his former coach, he made it clear that he's having a much better experience playing in Baltimore for Brian Billick.
He treats you like a man Johnson said. He sits you down and tells you what he expects from you. He's not going to overwork you. If we don't have to be here
we're not going to be here. He keeps it player friendly.
