Wide receiver Terrell Owens has reportedly signed a three-year deal to come to Dallas, thus setting off angry Cowboys fans everywhere swearing that Jerry Jones has again ruined their team and they'll never watch a game.

Please. Since the Dallas Cowboys drafted Michael Irvin in 1988, they've drafted a steady string of gazelle-like wideouts. That means guys who run really well, and have hooves for hands.

Do Alexander Wright, Alvin Harper, or Kevin Williams show up very often on NFL Films? Ed Hervey, Stepfret Williams, and Macey Brooks were more likely to wind up in the XFL than a three-receiver set in Dallas. Wane McGarrity and MarTay Jenkins didn't make anybody forget Dupree or Pearson, and Antonio Bryant was only noteworthy when he was crazy.

Like, antisocial crazy. Like, bad enough for Cleveland to give up on him crazy, which indicates you ain't long for the league. When you look at your roster and say, "We don't need Bryant, we've got...uh...Joe Jurevicius and Dennis Northcutt. Together, they caught as many as he did last year. We'll be fine, Antonio. You just go ahead and keep throwing towels at coaches and talking to squirrels, we got this over here."

Anyway, Cowboys fans will boo Owens all they like, until the first time he makes a touchdown against Philadelphia, or even better yet, the Redskins. Then, all will be forgotten. He could score the TD that makes Dallas a playoff team, run into the endzone, pull out Tom Landry's hat and take a crap in it, and he'd still get cheered.

Just like they did against the hated spawn of Satan and MTV, Deion Sanders. Everybody hated him for pushing the 49ers over the Cowboys in 1995, but when he came to town and clog-danced in the silver star, he was a folk hero. Nobody wants to give back Super Bowl XXX because Prime Time was a part of that team, do they?

And Owens will be fine in Dallas. For exactly fourteen months. My over/under is May 26, 2007 for the moment when the TO/Cowboys relationship cracks open under the pressure like an Arizona sidewalk. Any takers?

Labels: Cowboys, NFL, TO