Media MonsterNFL

Terrell Owens Signing: The Good and The Bad

At long last, the most-talked-about unemployed receiver has found a new home. Now that Terrell Owens has signed with the Bengals, pundits and bloggers are considering how T.O. will fit into both the Cincinnati offense and culture. Obviously the receiver has some gas left in his tank after an unimpressive year in Buffalo. At the same time, with Owens’ record of tense relations with past organizations, Bengals’ fans have every right and reason to be wary of the potentially destructive impact Owens could have on the rising franchise. Here, a collection of the various reactions to last night’s news:

“Lordy, is this going to be a blast,” boasts Paul Daugherty at Cincinnati.com. Sure, Owens hasn’t been the most well-behaved player, but he does have a track record of making his quarterbacks better. And this could be another example of that: “At a certain career point, almost every player makes a slight turn from Me to We, in search of something his money and fame can’t buy. Maybe Owens is there. Maybe he’ll never get there.”

This was a football decision. “[L]et’s not get too carried away with all the passing talk. Cincinnati is a run-first team and will remain a run-first team, although it will throw more this season than last, says Steve Wyche at NFL.com. “While Owens may be perceived as a diva, he’ll willingly block in the run game, a trait that is always attractive to coaches.” He fits well into the existing system.

Jets fans must be relieved. “It was a full football freakout,” says Jason Gay at The Wall Street Journal. In recent days, rumors swirled that the Jets were in the running to sign T.O., but he was “too volatile an ingredient to toss into this fragile mix.” His problem is that he “flourishes in an unstable environment, where no one knows what tomorrow brings and his carnival act can be a fun diversion from the daily tedium.” For a Jets team on the verge of a big season, “say thanks for what never was.”

This is what the Bengals are for. “It is seriously almost comical at this point,” says Ross Tucker at Sports illustrated. Just look at the rest of this roster, already full of problematic players like Chad Ochocinco, Pacman Jones, and Tank Johnson. Owens was “considered toxic enough that the vast majority of NFL teams wouldn’t even consider him but thankfully for him Cincinnati evaluates players “regardless of whether they’re known for bad off-field behavior or locker-room divisiveness.” Making all these parts work will be tough.

Quit your worrying. So what if Owens and Ochocinco “have reputations for being ‘diva’ receivers,” says Pete Prisco at CBSSports.com. “But that’s OK. They both play hard. They practice hard. They don’t drink. They don’t get arrested” the way other players do. “What do they do that’s wrong? They talk. Big deal.” So before you write off the Bengals for having too many cooks in the kitchen, think about the upside to this deal. The Bengals “aren’t fading like most think.”

Image via Getty