At 10/13/09 03:05 AM, reverend wrote: You said it. What they should do is trade TO, since you know he is leaving after this season anyways, for some mid-draft picks or try and get a decent QB. I think the TO experiment Buffalo is over.
It assuredly is, as he's faded out of the O thanks in part to Jauron and Edwards. However, what team wants to take on his publicity, baggage, and salary for a declining star who demands double-digit targets every game and drops at least three to four of those targets?
The 49ers as a return would make some degree of sense, especially since I think Singletary could be one of the few coaches to whip TO into shape (given that Mike is fucking crazy), but with the money tied up in Crabtree now and their continued devotion to attempting to develop Josh Morgan (who has the ball-dropping skills that TO has now), I don't know.
The Ravens make some sense...I think Ray Lewis could help keep Terrell in line, and they need a big-play receiver to complement another steady veteran in Derrick Mason. Kelly Washington's days of WR relevance look to be over, Demetrius Williams has proven a bust thus far, and Mark Clayton looks more like the continually-regressing Clayton that we've seen each year after his 930yd, 5 TD sophomore season a few years back.
TO would draw attention from the opposing D and would really help stretch the field for possession receivers like Clayton and Mason and Todd Heap. As well, if teams still choose to give him double coverage on occasion, that gives the running game another dimension, which I don't think anyone would want to mess with. Ray Rice is a beast in a tiny package, McGahee can still plow (though not really sprint), and McClain is a Mack truck. Flacco would be aided by a target like TO as well, because other than Mason, he doesn't really have to target a lot of guys and ends up doing a lot of passing around on offense, tossing to Rice or Heap.
The Titans could be a landing spot too imo, with the whole offense struggling, especially the pass game. Nate Washington is not a WR1, and TO would bump him to WR2 sliding Justin Gage to 3rd receiver and making the passing game a lot more dangerous, and again helping to spread the field for Alge Crumpler (remember when he was good?), Chris Johnson and LenDale White.
Bears would be a good landing spot too, because Cutler always ends up having good rapport with players like TO (shit, Brandon Marshall's nickname is Baby TO), and Earl Bennett is better as a 3rd receiver. Johnny Knox is by no means bad, but I think he'd be more dangerous as a returner, since they don't seem to want to return Devin Hester to that role and Hester is not a WR1 either.
So even without considering pay, draft picks, cap space, public presence, ESPN coverage, etc., you're looking at four teams that would make sense for Owens to go to: Baltimore, Chicago, San Fran, and Tennessee.
"In this world // We walk on the roof of hell, // Gazing at flowers." -- Issa