Carolina’s
premier pass rushers, Charles “Big Money” Johnson and Greg “the Kraken” Hardy,
couldn’t have more polar personalities. Described as the “Odd
Couple,” the two differ in nearly every respect. Big Money, or “Chuck,” has the big contract
and reticent personality. Not known
for being particularly vocal in the locker room, Charlotte News and Observer’s Joe Person describes Johnson as a
reluctant leader, and his teammates color him as “professional” and as a “normal
guy.” In contrast, teammates describe “Little
Money” Hardy as a “guy who is a little off.” Hardy’s alter ego, “the Kraken,” highlights
his cavalier and domineering personality, which starkly contrasts the unsung
hero Charles Johnson.
The
national media also reinforces these differences. Johnson is the reserved and unrecognized star. Big Money might bring it strong and consistent
each week, but he flies under the radar (probably much to his liking). He’s relentless in the pass rush and strong
against the run. Defensive coordinators
and offensive tackles know him, and are probably nauseated when game planning
for Chuck. His impressive consistency hasn’t
garnered any real national appreciation, however. He’s never made the Pro Bowl. Most analysts outside of Carolina hardly know
his name.
He
puts up impressive numbers, but somehow it never captures tremendous attention.
Charles Johnson Stats:
|
| Year |
Tm |
G |
GS |
Sk |
PD |
FF |
Fmb |
FR |
Yds |
TD |
Tkl |
| 2010 |
CAR |
16 |
16 |
11.5 |
1 |
|
|
|
|
|
51 |
| 2011 |
CAR |
15 |
15 |
9.0 |
4 |
|
|
|
|
|
31 |
| 2012 |
CAR |
16 |
16 |
12.5 |
4 |
7 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
31 |
| 2013 |
CAR |
14 |
14 |
11.0 |
|
1 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
28 |
| Career |
|
93 |
65 |
54.0 |
19 |
11 |
0 |
3 |
0 |
0 |
178 |
Greg
Hardy’s eager adoption of the “Kraken” persona, in contrast, has made him a
national celebrity. The crazy contact lenses, face paint, primetime introduction
as “Kraken from Hogwarts” have created media sensation that dominated 2014 free
agency talk. The Kraken’s Super Bowl media
tour, where he scared Skip Bayless and publically welcomed the franchise tag as
an opportunity to enhance his already astronomical market value, captured the
national media spotlight.
Kraken’s
statistical production is coincidently resemblant of his flashy personality
also. Compiling 26 sacks over the past season,
Hardy has imposed himself on the field. Hardy accrued these sacks much differently than
his counterpart, Big Money. Johnson has
had a steady diet of sacks for the past four years. Hardy tends to feast heavily and sporadically,
often followed by fasting. 66.67% of
Hardy’s sacks came in just three games in 2013.
This
production, however, is starkly different to Johnson’s steady diet of
sacks.
Greg Hardy Stats:
|
| Year |
G |
GS |
Sk |
PD |
FF |
Fmb |
FR |
Yds |
TD |
Tkl |
| 2010 |
15 |
0 |
3.0 |
1 |
2 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
20 |
| 2011 |
16 |
16 |
4.0 |
11 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
38 |
| 2012 |
15 |
10 |
11.0 |
2 |
2 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
41 |
| 2013* |
16 |
13 |
15.0 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
40 |
| Career |
62 |
39 |
33.0 |
15 |
6 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
139 |
Hardy’s
recent arrest for assault on a female and communicating threats again
epitomizes this contrast. Hardy
was described as a flaky guy coming into the league, and has always sought the
spotlight, for better or for worse, while he’s been Carolina. Whether it’s
posting pictures on Instagram of him going 100 mph in a Bentley or strolling
into his first year of training camp bandaged up from a motorcycle accident,
questions have always surrounded the Kraken’s character. Until this week, the questions have been
relatively minor and more about maturity than character. This most recent incident, however, once again
raises eyebrows.
Big
Money, who has maintained a polished public image, noted this on Twitter after
Hardy’s arrest:
The
message was simple, unassuming, and perfectly fitting of Johnson’s personality—“Money
Over Bitches.” If Big Money knows about anything as much as getting after the quarterback,
it is getting after the big contract. Clearly directed at teammate Greg Hardy—don’t let anything come between you and the paper—Johnson’s comments shouldn’t be
overlooked. Hardy is at the most important financial junction of his
career. Any opportunity that diminishes
a player’s value has to be avoided. The
fame and flash can be fun, but it can’t get in the way of the money.
Hardy
needs to take a page from the “Big Money” playbook and work on saving his image and money. This incident will not be cheap. This will have contract implications, whether
direct or indirect. ProFootballTalk’s
Mike Florio predicted that Hardy’s arrest will cause his market value to “plummet”
on WFNZ’s Mac Attack. At the very minimum, this incident doesn’t give Hardy any
added advantage in contract negotiations.
If he misses any workouts or games from suspension, it will cost the
Kraken major money. A one game suspension
would result in more than 700k loss for Hardy.
From
the outside looking in, the “Kraken” persona has increased Hardy’s market value
to this point. The persona can’t become bigger than the player, however. Listen to your boy Charles Johnson; they don’t
call him “Big Money” for nothing. MOB!
