Since it has been decided that Elijah Dukes  would fit on the Yankees (http://bit.ly/putupyourdukes) would Terrell Owens be a good fit for the Patriots?

Let me start by saying that I despise Terrell Owens’ actions throughout his career much like Newman despises Keith Hernandez.  One of the best highlights in NFL history is George Teague blasting T.O. after he ran to celebrate a touchdown on the star at the center of Cowboy Stadium.  I do, however, respect the hell out of him when he is on the field with his mouth shut.  His performance against the Patriots while coming back from a major leg injury would have gone down in the annals of NFL history had the Eagles won that Super Bowl.  So, could he fit with the Patriots, and more importantly, Bill Belichick?

The Patriots offense is unsettled midway through March as we head into draft season.  They have made zero major acquisitions on the offensive side of the ball, have only 2 NFL caliber receivers (one of whom has played the position for one year) healthy heading into the 2010 season, and have no tight end to speak of.  Now, I know things are going to change before the season starts, but the worst thing that can happen to this team is to let Tom Brady’s prime wind down with sub-par skill players around him.  We’ve seen it before in 2006 with the Reche Caldwell year, as they were a dropped pass or two away from winning another Super Bowl (which would have left Manning still ringless).  After that disaster in the AFC Championship game, the Pats responded by bringing in both and aging malcontent in Randy Moss for a 4^th round pick, and a young, small, mostly unknown guy in Wes Welker for a 2^nd round pick.  At the time, the price on Moss was reasonable, but no one knew which Moss you’d get, the Hall of Famer from Minnesota or the dog from Oakland.  The price for Welker seemed high, especially considering his pedestrian career up to that point.  Both of these moves obviously turned out to be homeruns.

As painful as it is for me to say, I think T.O. could be another homerun for the Patriots.  Is he the T.O. of old?  No, of course he’s not.  But that might be a good thing, as he may be ready to settle into a role, albeit one where he would get targeted 100 times.  As of right now, the starting wide receivers are Moss and Julian Edelman.  I like Edelman, and as a 7^th round pick who played quarterback at a small college, he developed very nicely in his rookie season.  That being said, he is not, nor is it likely he ever will be, a #2 wide receiver in the NFL.  He’d a make a strong #3 guy, and a great #4 once Wes Welker comes back.  Even Brandon Tate, whom was a potential 1^st rounder in 2009 before injury can simply not be counted on to be either healthy or productive in 2010.  The Pats, as of right now, are desperately thin at WR.

T.O.’s famous attitude is very well known.  How would he get along with Belichick?  Moss?  Brady?  I have two main thoughts on this.  #1.  I think he would be able to fit in.  #2.  I don’t really care.  I’ll get to #2 in a second, but let me touch on #1 first.  Belichick has dealt with many malcontents and “coach killers” over the years, and had great success.  He loves gym rats, which T.O. is, and he loves guys who love football, which T.O. does.   If anyone can handle T.O., it’s Belichick.  How would Moss and T.O. get along?  Swimmingly I think.  Moss is in a contract year and he plays for a team that loves throwing the ball.  What made Moss great in his 2007 record setting season was that he wasn’t the only option on the team, and the defenses couldn’t double him play after play after play.  T.O., especially playing inside, would take a ton of pressure away from Moss, and vice versa.  As far as Brady, T.O. has simply never played with a QB of Brady’s caliber.  He had Steve Young at the end of his concussed career, a few solid years from Jeff Garcia, a short time with Donovan McNabb, and a few good years with Tony Romo.  Solid QB’s, all, but none of them are Brady.  Brady also would have no problem getting in T.O.’s face and letting him know who’s the boss of this team.

As far as #2 from the previous paragraph, Terry Glenn was the best wide receiver on the 2001-2002 Patriots, and started all of one game and caught passes in just three.  He started in their 5^th game, and watching him play the WR position after watching the other guys they were running out there was amazing.  In that game he caught 7 balls for 110 yards and a TD, and looked like a great option for Brady, in his 1^st year at QB.  He missed the first 4 games due to a league suspension for drugs, but this was only after the Patriots attempted to suspend him (overruled by an arbiter) for the whole season.  Bill Belichick a coach with a so-so track record in Cleveland, and a 5-11 record in New England, threw his best offensive player off the team before the season even started.  Even after that stellar game, Glenn faked injuries and caused problems for the Patriots.  He came back from his injuries for games #13 and #14, at a time when the Patriots were on a winning streak and heading for the playoffs.  So what happened next?  Again, Belichick suspended him for the rest of the season, while making a run at the Super Bowl.  He simply wasn’t going to take any shit.  He would not be held hostage by talent back then, and now, with 3 Super Bowl rings to his name, he has a lot more power and leeway to do what he wants.  If T.O. comes in and is a problem, Belichick will have no reservations about shipping him out, and T.O. would know it.

The questions about T.O. used to be only about his attitude, but now there are concerns about his performance as well.  He certainly has lost a step, never had great hands, and is at an age when WR’s usually fall off a cliff.  Either way, his contract will be small enough that he’s worth the risk, for both attitude and performance.  If he sucks, or if he’s a problem, he’s easily cast aside.  By all accounts, T.O. was a solid teammate last year with the Bills, despite having Ryan Leaf like QB’s throwing to him.  Also, while T.O. has certainly had his problems with QB’s in his career, his other teammates have often stood up for him.  Patriots WR/QB/RB/St Isaiah Stanback came over from the Cowboys last year and spoke glowingly about T.O. as a teammate.  Stanback, like Edelman, was a college QB being asked to switch to WR, even though he had hoped to stick at QB.  Who was there to help him with the transition?  None other than T.O.  Here’s Stanback on T.O. “I love T.O.  I know that obviously he gets a bad rap supposedly, but I was around him every day, and I know the real T.O.  He helped me out a lot, personally.”  That sounds like a guy who, at the tail end of his career, can certainly fit in on a championship caliber team with a Hall of Fame QB and Coach.  Even as little as a few weeks ago, I don’t think I would have been able to talk myself into T.O., but the more I think about it, the more it makes sense.