Chad Johnson makes CFL debut

The country is different and the field is bigger, but it's still a chance to play football. That's all Chad Johnson cares about.

The outspoken former Cincinnati Bengals standout made his CFL debut Friday night in the Montreal Alouettes' preseason finale, a 26-10 loss to the Ottawa RedBlacks.

Johnson, who caught 766 passes for 11,059 yards and 67 touchdowns in 11 NFL seasons with the Bengals and New England Patriots, caught one pass for 13 yards from former NFL quarterback Troy Smith in Friday's game.

"It felt good. Nervous, butterflies. It was cool," Johnson said. "A little sloppy, I have a lot of work to do, but it felt good. It felt good to be on the field again. It was fun."

Johnson said the CFL field, which is 150 yards long and 65 yards wide, as opposed to 120 yards long and 53.33 yards wide in the NFL, wasn't an issue for him.

"Even though the field is wider, the dimensions are a little different, it didn't seem much different at all," Johnson said.

Asked if he was having fun, Johnson smiled and said: "Yes, somewhat. I'm not there yet. You'll know when I'm having fun, you'll be able to tell."

The Alouettes open the season Thursday against the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.