Get your popcorn ready, Cincinnati: Terrell Owens is coming to town.
Owens, the outspoken wide receiver and reality TV star, agreed to a one-year contract with the Bengals, a team source told NFL Network insider Michael Lombardi on Tuesday.
NFL Network insider Jason La Canfora confirmed that Owens will be paid $2 million in base salary and could earn an additional $2 million in incentives. Owens received $6.5 million from the Buffalo Bills last season
The news thrilled friend and new Bengals teammate Chad Ochocinco, who had lobbied the team on Owens' behalf. Ochocinco wrote on Twitter: "Terrell Owens is officially a Cincinnati Bengals, Cincy let's welcome him with open arms, it's on now!" He later added that he and Owens are "like batman n robin, siskel n ebert, ying n yang, bonnie n clyde but you're bonnie though."
Owens was much less theatrical in his lone Twitter post, writing: "Hoping 2 b a Bengal w/in the 24hrs!!"
According to The Cincinnati Enquirer, Owens will not sign his contract until Thursday, when the Bengals hold their first training-camp practice in Georgetown, Ky. The newspaper also reported that Owens isn't expected to attend the 9 a.m. practice that day, but he likely will show up for the 7 p.m. session.
Owens took the Bengals' deal after the St. Louis Rams decided not to make an offer.
"We took everything into play and we came up with a decision, and I really want to talk about the 2010 Rams," coach Steve Spagnuolo said Tuesday.
Spagnuolo declined to say how serious the Rams were in contract talks with Owens.
"I'm not going to put it in a category," Spagnuolo said. "We sat down, talked about it. We went about it the right way and the decision was made."
That left the Bengals as the only team publicly in the mix. While discussing his interest in Owens, Bengals president Mike Brown noted Monday that the receiver caught the winning 57-yard touchdown pass during the Dallas Cowboys' 31-22 victory over the Bengals in 2008.
"I think that I would rather have him line up on our side of the ball than the other side of the ball," Brown said.
Brown has a history of giving chances to players with trouble in their past. He repeatedly brought back receiver Chris Henry, who was arrested five times and died last year in a fall of his fiancee's truck. In the last two years, the Bengals also have signed running back Cedric Benson, running back Larry Johnson and receiver Matt Jones, all of whom were let go by other teams because of off-the-field issues.
Unlock HQ Video HQ video delivered by Akamai
In an interview with The Associated Press earlier this month, Owens pointed out that he was on good behavior last season in Buffalo, where he caught 55 passes for 829 yards and five touchdowns -- his least-productive full season since early in his 14-year NFL career with the San Francisco 49ers.
Ochocinco unsuccessfully lobbied for the Bengals to sign Owens after they visited with him in March. Instead, the Bengals chose wide receiver Antonio Bryant and gave him a four-year, $28 million contract with $8.5 million guaranteed. However, there have been concerns about Bryant's health in organized team activities and minicamp, the Enquirer reported.
Another change since then: Cincinnati's quarterback joined the lobbying effort. Carson Palmer, who has been working out with Owens in California, excitedly called Bengals coach Marvin Lewis about making a run at the receiver.
"Carson was really impressed with a lot of the things that Terrell was doing," Lewis said Monday. "Carson's comments to me -- I guess the word is they resonate well."
Lewis denied last week that the team needed Owens, telling the team's official Web site, "I don't want to speak (about Terrell). We've been down that road. I don't have a concern that we need to add anybody (at receiver)." But Lewis changed his tune Monday, saying the Bengals' goals and Owens' goals "match up."
"He's an effective player and you like what he brings," Lewis said. "You like what people say about him who have had him on their football team to the positive, and we've just got to make sure none of the negative creeps in anymore. He's been a couple of years beyond that."
Brown formed his opinion about Owens last March during a one-on-one meeting in conjunction with his tryout.
"When he was here, I was surprised," Brown said. "I met with him personally and privately. He is not at all the way his public image is depicted. He's a pleasant person, a quiet person. I found him engaging. And I do trust my own eyes on this sort of thing."
The Bengals now lead the NFL in reality TV show stars. Ochocinco appeared on "Dancing With the Stars" during the offseason and has a dating show called "Ochocinco: The Ultimate Catch" currently playing on VH1. Right after Ochocinco's show comes "The T.O. Show."
No comments:
Post a Comment