Titans RB Chris Johnson announced via his Twitter page that he and his agent will meet with Titans management on Wednesday.  "Could get better or worse," Johnson tweets.  Despite that ominous remark, we think this is an excellent sign. It's the first step towards a new contract and ends the standoff between the two sides.  We'd expect CJ2K to have a new deal in hand within 10 days.  We still worry about his durability early in the season after the extended holdout, but Johnson's upside makes him impossible to pass on as a top-5 RB.

The Titans and RB Chris Johnson are still miles apart in contract negotiations.  “We’ve discussed parameters. If we can’t agree on the parameters, there’s no sense making offers,” GM Mike Reinfeldt said. “If your parameters are different… and if you are talking a different language then you are wasting your time."  Both sides continue to play hardball here.  We still aren't expecting Johnson to miss any regular season games, but it's tough to believe he'll be in game shape when he finally returns to the team.

Titans RB Chris Johnson doesn't just want to become the highest-paid RB in the league.  He wants to become one of the highest-paid players regardless of position.  According to ESPN's Chris Mortensen, CJ is looking for $13 million per year.  Beat writer Jim Wyatt says Johnson wants even more.  To put that in perspective, Colts QB Peyton Manning's new deal is paying him an average of $18 million per year.  The gap between Johnson and the Titans seems wider than ever, and there's no end in sight to this holdout.  We just lowered CJ2K in our RB rankings.  Even if he reports before the start of the regular season, he'll be an injury-risk after a lost offseason.

Titans GM Mike Reinfeldt said he is willing to make Chris Johnson the highest-paid RB in the league, according to the AP. Johnson said he hasn't seen an offer. That's because the team won't negotiate while he's holding out. This is why the situation is ridiculous. If the team hasn't conveyed this message to Johnson or his agent, the front office is looney. If Johnson's side did get this message and won't end the holdout to start negotiations from that highly enviable point, they're being idiots. Let's hope someone un-stupids this situation in the next few days.

Titans RB Chris Johnson's holdout has reached 11 days, and there's no sign of it ending anytime soon.  CJ2K remains in Orlando while his team prepares for its preseason opener on Saturday.  “I have not talked to him since the day before he held out,” HC Mike Munchak said. “I let (GM) Mike Reinfeldt handle that through talking with his agent. I’m not sure who he is talking with, but at this point it’s all business right now with him. I’m just kind of staying out of that one.”  Johnson has reportedly been keeping up with the new playbook through backup RB Javon Ringer, but that's no substitute for being on the field.  We're getting close to lowering Johnson in our RB rankings.

Titans RB Chris Johnson continues to skip out on training camp as he looks for a lucrative long-term deal.  Beat writer Jim Wyatt believes CJ2K's holdout "could be a long one."  We're in a typical standoff.  Johnson has said that he won't report to camp without a new deal, while the Titans say they won't start negotiating until Johnson is in camp.  We're guessing Johnson will budge first considering he's being fined $30,000 for each day he misses.  Stay tuned...

The Chris Johnson holdout is officially on.  Beat writer Jim Wyatt confirms that CJ2K will not report for the start of training camp today.  Set to make just $800,000 this year, Johnson is reportedly looking for a deal that will pay him $30 million guaranteed.  Tough to blame him considering DeAngelo Williams just got $21 million guaranteed from Carolina.  We'd expect the two sides to come to an agreement sometime over the next 10 days.  We won't start to think about lowering Johnson's projections unless he's still holding out into mid-August.  To recap, the list of holdouts now includes Johnson, Frank Gore, DeSean Jackson, Marcedes Lewis, and possibly Matt Forte.

A Chris Johnson holdout is starting to look more and more likely.  NFL Network's Jason La Canfora and the Nashville Tennessean's Jim Wyatt reported as much back in June.  Now league insider Michael Lombardi is on record that "under no circumstances" will Johnson report to training camp under his current contract.  The 3-time Pro Bowler is set to make just $800,000 in 2011, so we can't really blame him.  The Titans would be wise to lock him up long-term, but this standoff could spill over into August.  Stay tuned...

Titans beat writer Jim Wyatt expects RB Chris Johnson to be a no-show when the team opens up training camp. Wyatt “gets the sense” that CJ2K won’t back down from his desire to land a lucrative contract. Last offseason, the Titans appeased Johnson by giving him a raise of $1.5 million. But after 3 straight trips to the Pro Bowl, and posting the most yardage of any back over that span, he’s certainly worthy of a huge payday. This is a situation we’ll be monitoring once a new CBA is completed.

Although Titans RB Chris Johnson has carried an NFL-high 674 times over the past 2 seasons, OC Chris Palmer isn't worried about his stud wearing down.  "Chris Johnson is one of our playmakers and we'd like to get as much out of him as we could," Palmer said.  "Just watching Chris run, when he's not on the field, I think we're hurting ourselves."  That being said, Palmer did concede that they may try to lighten his load by giving those tough goal line carries to another back -- either rookie Jamie Harper or a free-agent.  "We've talked about different personnel groups, and some of those personnel groups would have Chris out," Palmer admitted.  This would obviously put a dent in Johnson's fantasy upside, but a lot of his scores come from distance anyways.  He's still a rock-solid top-3 pick.

New Titans HC Mike Munchak is focusing on ways to get RB Chris Johnson the ball in space more often this season. “We have to keep looking at ways to get him the ball,” Munchak said. It sounds like the screen game might do the trick. “It doesn’t have to be handed to him,” Munchak said. “Hand it to him, pitch it to him, throw it to him. We work screens quite a bit; it’s just a matter of getting them called in games.” Johnson is one of the most electric players in the game in open space, so this is obviously excellent news for his fantasy value, especially in PPR leagues.

The Titans have hired Mike Munchak as their new HC.  Munchak has been Tennessee's OL coach for the past 14 years.  OC Mike Heimerdinger has confirmed that he'll stay on board, meaning the team's offensive system will remain intact.  It's good news for RB Chris Johnson.

Titans RB Chris Johnson revealed that he played through a thigh injury this season.  "I would say for about six weeks I was banged up pretty bad," Johnson said. "But in this league you have to play with pain like that. I felt like I made it through and the last three games it wasn’t bothering me any more."  The injury is partly to blame for Johnson's yards-per-carry average dropping by 1.1 from his big '09 season, but offensive line struggles and consistent 8 and 9-men fronts were also issues.  Johnson would benefit from a consistent passing attack, but he should still come off the board among the top-5 picks in fantasy drafts next summer.

Titans OC Mike Heimerdinger was recently asked whether or not he plans on reducing RB Chris Johnson's workload this season.  Here was his response: "I think the games and what happens in the game will determine how many times he'll carry. So I don't have that answer right off the bat. When you hand it to a guy and he's averaging six yards a carry, it's easier to give it to him again."  Tough to argue with that logic.  Johnson should easily top the 300-carry mark again this year, but the team would be smart to limit his touches when possible to keep him healthy.

The Titans and RB Chris Johnson have reportedly agreed on a "short-term fix" to the star RB's contract.  No additional years are being tacked on to the deal, but CJ2K will make more money in 2010 -- and that's what he really wanted.  The important thing for fantasy football purposes is that Johnson will report when Titans training camp opens on July 31.  He can safely be selected among the top-3 picks in your fantasy draft.

In an interview with Erin Andrews on the ESPYs pre-show, Titans RB Chris Johnson said contract negotiations are at a "standstill."  He also mentioned that he's told the team what he's looking for and is waiting for them to make a move.  It doesn't sound like the two sides are any closer to a deal now than they were a couple months ago.

The Nashville Tennessean reports that the Titans are working on a deal for RB Chris Johnson that would give their star a small bump in pay, but not the massive one he’s looking for. Call it a compromise. This report comes a day after the NFL Network’s Michael Lombardi claimed that tensions between Johnson and the Titans have been “thawing.” The Titans remain unwilling to pay CJ2K the $30 million guaranteed he wants, but it’s beginning to look like the two sides will work something out. Look for him to report for most, if not all of training camp.

According to the NFL Network’s Michael Lombardi, the friction between RB Chris Johnson and the Titans is "beginning to thaw.” Lombardi believes CJ2K will report to training camp on time, something few expected to happen. Either way, Johnson was expected to show up at some point during camp to remain in compliance with the 30% rule. You’d be foolish to let the Titans superstar slip out of the top-3 in fantasy drafts.

RB Chris Johnson was reportedly seen working out at the Titans practice facility twice this week.  In truth, the news means nothing.  But it could be a sign he's backing off his hardlined stance for a new contract.  We still expect him to report to Titans training camp at some point in August.

Titans RB Chris Johnson wants $30-40 million guaranteed in his new contract.  For comparison, Super Bowl-winning QB Eli Manning received $35 million guaranteed when he agreed to a new deal last summer.  RB Steven Jackson got $20.5 million in his last contract.  We'd be shocked if Johnson even got $30 million.  If he's serious about this demand, his holdout could last awhile.