T.O. or not T.O., That is the question...

So the buzz this week seems to be about Terrell Owens, his ACL injury, and which team will sign him this fall - if any. As a football fan, I have to consider the pluses and minuses of having him on my Cleveland Browns. As a girl, I'm dying to know how he hurt it in the first place.

Speculation is running rampant on the Internet and on the twitter-verse. Reports range from the injury occurring at a taping of a reality TV show to happening during a personal workout to denials that it happened at all. I don't know for sure what he did, but I do know how he DIDN'T hurt himself.

1. Rock of Love. There's no way T.O. tripped when he was exiting the "Rock of Love" bus. The tramps that want to be Brett Michael's next conquest are only looking for rock stars, not athletes. Now, when it comes to paychecks, maybe they should reconsider, but frankly, they aren't there yet.

2. Real Housewives of Atlanta. While it is very possible that T.O. and NeNe got into an argument and she flipped him over a large piece of furniture in a WWE move worthy of The Undertaker, I have to think he is smarter than that. No body crosses NeNe.

3. The Biggest Loser. I just can't see T.O. being tripped by one of the Big Boys in a race to the last twinkie... T.O. has more respect for his body. Plus, he's wicked fast!

4. Swamp People. "Tonnerre mes chiens. I can't read much or nothin, cant spell, but in the basin I know just about everything there is to know about to make a dolla. There's a gator. If he's making bubbles, he's caught. Lache pas la patate. Laisse bon temp roullez." Yeah, T.O. ain't going that far south.


Now enough of the silliness: would T.O. be a good addition to the Cleveland Browns? First, he'd have to get past the fact that his 2010 season was cut short due to a tear of his meniscus cartilage in his left knee in a game against the Browns on December 19th. For the record, in the week 4 Browns v Bengals game last year, he had 10 catches for 222 yards so who knows how much damage he would have done in week 14 if he hadn't been injured! The Bengals were pretty sad last year, so it's not like he missed out on the playoffs but he did miss the last three games of the season and left people wondering if he would be back this year.

Second, the addition of the ACL injury rumors don't help his prospects. He'd most likely be asked to pass an extensive physical before getting an offer. But that's if you want him to actually play as a starter. I think T.O. has reached the point in his career where his value to a team may be higher off the field than it is on the field. In 2010, a season where he lost three games due to injury, he still managed to get 983 receiving yards. For nine of his fifteen years in the league, he had over 1,000 yards plus two years in the 900's. You can't ignore that, even if he is a bit dinged up. It makes him a real threat whether starting or coming off the bench.

One thing you could always say about T.O. is that he knows how to work. None of his coaches or teammates has ever questioned his dedication to the game. He doesn't "take plays off." He gives everything when he is on the field and knows the game. Even when he played for a bad team like the Buffalo Bills, he got his catches and during that season became only the 6th NFL player to accumulate 1,000 catches!

Admittedly he had some issues in Philadelphia. He was criticizing his coaches and teammates and complaining that he wasn't getting enough passes thrown his way, etc. But he has grown a lot since then. He has been a team player and has kept himself out of trouble off the field. He makes the other players around him better by keeping a defense focused on him while others get the catches. He has "football smarts" and not all players understand the whole field like he does.

I'd like to see him come to Cleveland as more of a mentor to our young receiving core instead of an expected starter. I think he could teach these kids a lot about the game, about winning, about life. While there are benefits to having a young team as far as athleticism goes, these are also kids who don't have the experience necessary to handle what comes along with being an NFL player. And I think T.O. would do a really nice job helping them to learn those things.

Would T.O. be willing to fill that role? For the right offer, I think he would. And would the Browns like to have someone on the roster that is the ONLY NFL player to score TWO touchdowns against all 32 teams in the league? Oh, I think they would!


Respectfully Submitted,

Kate