Terrell Owens, A Raven?
By Riley B
It’s no secret that the wide receiver position has been troublesome for the Baltimore Ravens. In an attempt to fix that, the Ravens drafted Torrey Smith and traded for Lee Evans this off-season. Smith’s inexperience has handicapped him at times and Evans has only seen the field in two games due to injury. In a time like this, is Terrell Owens the answer?
More after the jump…
Terrell Owens is currently a free agent trying to return from ACL surgery this off-season. He held a workout recently and sent the tape to all 32 NFL teams in hopes that one would bite. So far, no one has but Rodney Harrison says he sees a perfect fit for Owens.
Harrison makes a compelling argument in saying that the now more modest Owens wouldn’t stir up controversy in a locker room led by Ray Lewis. This also seems like a legitimate chance for T.O. to win a Super Bowl, something he has yet to do in his star-studded career. Taking this into account, Owens may be willing to lower his asking price if he thinks he can win a Super Bowl. While this all sounds just peachy, there are some negative things that come to mind.
If you remember his free agent controversy from 2004, Owens made it very clear that he did not want to be on the Ravens and instead joined the Philadelphia Eagles where he came one game short of the holding the Lombardi Trophy. In that same season, he mocked Ray Lewis after he scored a touchdown against the Ravens.
When I think of T.O. in the purple and black, I envision Joe Flacco getting an ear full of the notoriously mouthy receiver. While it is quite a sight to ponder, I don’t think that the young Flacco would be able to handle it. You also can’t ignore the fact that Owens is in his late 30s and coming back from a serious knee surgery that the Ravens know about from experience (Dominique Foxworth). It’s a high risk, high reward scenario but I’m not that opposed to the idea. I think he’s a great fit for the Ravens (better than Lee Evans) and brings a feared presence at wide receiver that the Ravens have never had before. He’d also help mentor the young plethora of receivers the Ravens have in David Reed, Torrey Smith, and Tandon Doss. The only problem I see is that the Ravens already have an 81.
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