Chad Johnson aka Ocho Cinco is crediting Philadelphia Eagles QB Donovan McNabb with helping him adjust his attitude at the start of training camp.

Johnson, who had spent the offseason criticizing the Bengals and broadly hinting to the media that he would appreciate a trade out of Cincinnati, said McNabb helped convince him to put his teammates first and forget about his personal disappointments.

Chad calling McNabb a close friend, said McNabb reminded him that while he might feel miserable, millions of people would gladly trade places with him.

“I blew his phone up,” Johnson said recently. “Donovan was a big influence. He really is one of the reasons why I really turned myself around and looked at my situation as more of a positive outlook and just thinking about all the people that would love to play this game.”

“He took me in that direction, instead of thinking about, Oh I’m tired of losing and I don’t want to be here anymore, but just thinking about, man a lot of people wish they were in your shoes just to have the ability to play in the NFL. That kind of turned me around, and that’s why I’ve been as positive as I have been this year, and even though we’re losing I’ve just been plugging away.”

McNabb was not alone in helping Johnson get focused on football. Earlier this season, Ray Lewis said he also counseled Johnson spiritually.

At that time before Ocho Cinco (we at SIC are still calling him Chad Johnson), Lewis said his friendship outweighed the fact he was a key player on a division rival.

Lewis said, “You don’t care about wins and losses when it comes down to brotherhood and competition. That’s why I love when we play against Chad and play against those guys like that, because you’re going to get their best, and that’s why you play the game.”