The plate: Where will this eagle land?
Who will he play for?
That was the big question Wednesday, when word began to circulate that Owens’ suspension by the Philadelphia Eagles would likely be cut from four games to just one or two. There’s no question that TO has played his last game for Philadelphia, and that the Eagles certainly don’t want Owens near their practices or training facilities for the remainder of the season, even if Philadelphia no longer has a chance to reach the Los Angeles. playoffs. So the assumption here is that the Eagles release Owens, take the big-cap hit that comes with it, and let the rest of the NFL deal with this jerk.
But man, you talking about mid-season acquisitions. If Owens is truly exempted, he will be the mother of all shots for some lucky (or not so lucky) team in the NFL. He will probably sign cheaply, with a contender, trying to improve his image as a “team player” (yeah, sure), in order to land a multi-year deal next summer. And really, I don’t hate the idea of signing him. In 2004, Owens proved that he was capable of keeping quiet for just one year, when circumstances are fresh and people still don’t hate him. He might as well be a good soldier for the rest of 2005, wherever he lands. (But teams shouldn’t be signing him to a multi-year deal!) Anyway, let’s take a look at my top contenders for TO’s services:
5. Seattle Seahawks. The ‘Hawks have suffered a series of open injuries this year, the most notable being Darrell Jackson, who is still not expected to return for another couple of weeks. As a result, Shaun Alexander is having an incredible year, but defenses are starting to put 16 in the area to stop him. Would Mike Holmgren gulp for a legitimate deep threat to keep Alexander a little cleaner?
4. Washington Redskins. This is the Dan Snyder factor, which is mitigated by the Joe Gibbs factor. Acquiring Owens is the kind of high-profile, ridiculous thing that Snyder gravitates toward. But Gibbs is a smart guy who can’t stand fools, and insiders say that Snyder adores Gibbs and wouldn’t do anything so great to piss him off. However, it fits well.
3. Atlanta Falcons. Owens has a history with Jim Mora, has a home in the Atlanta area (which is supposedly for sale), and gets along with Mike Vick. The problem here is that he also has a track record with former 49ers offensive coordinator Greg Knapp, the backup coordinator here in Atlanta, as well. Knapp is the guy Owens humiliated by yelling at him for about ten minutes during a game his final season in San Francisco.
2. Denver Broncos. Mike Shanahan already thinks he’s a genius, and what better way to show that he deserves to talk about staffing than to sign Owens, hook him up alongside Rod Smith, and watch Jake Plummer go crazy. On the other hand, if that means Plummer starts pitching 35 times a game again, Denver might want to reconsider this.
1. Dallas Cowboys. It is a natural fit. Dallas hasn’t been punk enough lately. Owens moves onto the Texas Stadium turf in a few weeks and kneels over the center star. His career thus closes the circle.
Will the Indianapolis Colts go 16-0?
Rob Gillespie, BoDog.com: I don’t think so. They have some tough games ahead of them and they could take over the AFC so soon their last two games won’t make sense. I also think they are focused on winning the Super Bowl and not on a perfect season. However, the only team that can beat them is themselves.
Want to reconsider your response to Reggie Bush for the Heisman Trophy one more time after his incredible performance against Fresno State last week?
RG, BoDog.com: Wow. I was certainly doubting my comments on Saturday night. Impressive on the stat sheet and even more impressive to look at! However, two things will lessen the impact of that game. First, it was too late for many East Coast voters to see it, and second, there’s no way the game was that close. The gap between Texas and USC in the polls has closed significantly over the season and I think that will affect voters a bit as well. Texas’ game against Texas A&M on Friday could be the key game for Heisman’s career.
What’s the most confusing thing about the NFL this year? That the Minnesota Vikings are at .500? That the San Diego Chargers might not make the playoffs? That the Philadelphia Eagles are under .500? That AFC East is so pathetic? Or something completely different?
RG, BoDog.com: It looks like a bad year for parity. You have the Texans sucking on Sunday night (again) and the Colts are going 10-0 with relative ease (no wins by less than a TD). My opinion is that the salary cap created parity for a time and had crushed dynasties, but now some teams have figured out how to work with the cap and others have not. This is resulting in some smaller dynasties like the ones the Pats have had and a return to an unbalanced league where the level of talent in their division and on their schedule will largely dictate who makes the playoffs. If the Eagles or Chargers were in the NFC West instead of Seattle, or the NFC Central instead of Chicago, they would probably be 8-2 as well.
Other than Texas-USC, can you give us the one BCS matchup you would like to see this January and tell us why?
RG, BoDog.com: I think a Notre Dame / Ohio State Fiesta Bowl would be a great game. Ohio State has just two losses, the big game against Texas and the grinder at Happy Valley. Penn State’s game may have seemed a little weak at the time, but now we see that the Nittany Lions are for real. That makes OSU a very good team in my opinion and it would be a great test for a Notre Dame team that I can’t really understand. Two programs with large and passionate fans will make the energy level in the stadium very high and bring out the best in both teams.