Terrell Owens: Now The Bills Get The Thrills

I wanted to wait it out, to sit the Terrell Owens theatrics out for a few days.

I wanted the dust to settle, for Jim Rome and other ESPN analysts to give their perspectives, and to even allow fellow Bleacher Report writers the chance to have the first crack at this story.

And even though this story has been done-up more than Joan Rivers, there's still a side that not many have taken. And that's Owens'.

If there are any T.O. supporters out there, whether it be in the Bay Area, in Philly, or in Texas, they're in hiding.

They're keeping their mouths shut, in fear Owens' one-year experiment will blow up in their faces, or more importantly, his face.

But I'm here to tell you, fans of the NFL, fans of the media, and fans of Owens, that his season will not be nearly as disastrous as many hope.

Sure, Owens has developed into a "cancer" for each of his previous three teams, but it's a tremendous fault to overlook the success he brought all three of those teams. Do not forget the fact that his first year with both Philadelphia and Dallas went extremely well.

In his tenure with the 49ers, Owens ousted Jerry Rice by becoming one of the best young receivers, while aiding Jeff Garcia and the rest of the team to the playoffs. He did so with both of his next two teams, as well, while even helping the Eagles get to the Super Bowl, where he played with a still injured foot.

That doesn't make up for all the wild antics, brash comments, and destruction that Owens forced onto his former teammates. No, not quite. But what it does do is show us that Owens can be calmed. He can be tamed, if only for a short while.

With a one-year deal worth $6.5 million, the Bills were acknowledging this. They were, are, and forever will be aware of the risk in obtaining Owens. But, unlike all the other teams out there, they weren't afraid.

They took a good look at their team, realized they were only a few games away from being in the playoffs, and saw that Lee Evans could no longer do it on his own.

They saw a chance, and they took it.

They noticed that Trent Edwards, while disgustingly average up until this point, could use a little relief of the constant pressure he's been under. Only having one quality option to turn to on offense will do that to you, you know.

Just ask Brett Favre about the 2006 season, when all he had was Donald Driver.

The countless people who are against this signing, or Owens signing with anyone for that matter, are merely bandwagon jumpers. And who can blame them?

Owens had set himself up for this dramatic fall. He started this fight by entrenching his stats and physical abilities in a history drenched with rumors and drama with teammates.

He's the one in the limelight with the light flashing in his eyes. That's why he always wears sunglasses, after all.

He's the one who will constantly be looked at, having people question his abilities and agenda. 

But enough with the negatives. We've heard about his bad side for as long as it's existed. We know about the three teams he's "ruined". We know that he loves the media, and in turn, whether they like to admit it or not, all members of the media love T.O.

So, let's all put down our cameras, click the "x" on the web page displaying the latest T.O. video clip, and stop writing about the guy. Let's stop feeding the bear.

Not because we don't want to see it or don't want to be a part of it. Just because we want to see it hungry again.

Just watch. Watch Owens make Lee Evans even better than he already is. Watch as he makes Trent Edwards look like a decent signal caller. And watch as he puts Buffalo back on the map.

We're talking the big stage, folks. We're talking primetime games. We're talking lights, camera, action.

We can keep talking. But can we, at least for now, stop talking about Terrell Owens?