The simple fact that T.O. was without a team so far into the offseason is a complete joke. That never should have been the case. Can he be annoying and tough to deal with? Definitely. But even at age 36, anyone can see that the man can still play. Apparently, so do the Cincinnati Bengals. Today, the Bengals signed T.O. to a one year deal. It’s about time.

Earlier in the week we heard rumors that Owens may sign with St. Louis. I hope that was just an ugly rumor and that he nor his agent, Drew Rosenhaus, were seriously considering that.  What kind of sense would that have made? But that’s neither here nor there. If you remember, a few months ago Cincy brought Owens in to meet with him. Then they sent him on his way after the meeting. They weren’t interested. This is partially because they already signed Antonio Bryant earlier in the offseason (why that should’ve mattered is beyond me). Then T.O. met with Seattle, Washington and the Jets to name a few. Still no job.

Even at his age, T.O. is still a top-caliber wideout in this league. Make no mistake about it. Do you see any other WR blocking downfield like he does? He never takes plays off like a nameless receiver in New England (cough  -Randy Moss- cough).  Earlier this summer when he met with Cincy, I was strongly against him teaming with Chad Johnson (if you’ve read any of my stuff, you’ll know that I just can’t bring myself to calling Chad by his new last name). I called it a train wreck waiting to happen. But then I thought about it: Chad doesn’t really complain about not getting the ball. He just loves attention (maybe more than T.O. actually). So maybe it should work.

I was surprised to learn that Carson Palmer actually played a role in getting Owens. Apparently he lobbied for him. Both Carson and Chad are getting long in the tooth and they’ve probably hit their ceiling together,  so it’s probably time they shook things up a bit. He’s definitely worth the risk. Coach, Marvin Lewis, said Antonio Bryant will line up in the slot in order to accommodate Owens’ arrival.

But the bigger question is how long will T.O. continue to sign these 1-year deals? He just came off of one in Buffalo, and now this. As difficult as it was for him to get this gig this year, he better have a one hell of a year. If not, unfortunately I think this may be it for him.