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Will Terrell Owens be a Bengal this season? The Cincinnati Bengals have this week invited Terrell Owens to Ohio as their quest for a wide receiver with deep-threat potential continues. Owens will meet with team officials and coaches today…

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Will Terrell Owens be a Bengal this season?

The Cincinnati Bengals have this week invited Terrell Owens to Ohio as their quest for a wide receiver with deep-threat potential continues.

Owens will meet with team officials and coaches today after dining with head coach Marvin Lewis last night.

The 36-year-old playmaker, released by the Buffalo Bills after one season with the team, had 55 catches for 829 yards and five touchdowns last year – his lowest touchdown total since 1999. But it was a troubled season for the Bills, with coaching and quarterbacking changes that made it difficult for the offense to gel.

Owens proved towards the end of the season that he still has the ability to astound, even if it was only on a handful of occasions. He blitzed the Titans, the Jaguars, and the Dolphins over a three game span that saw him amass 378 yards – including a nine catch, 197 yard dismantling in Jacksonville.

Despite last seasons’ drop-off, his 43 touchdowns over the last four years will have given Marvin Lewis pause for thought as the two sat down for dinner last night. Also playing on the mind of 2009’s Coach of the Year will be the pleas of Chad Ochocinco, who has been determined to get Owens in orange and black since the end of last season.

It is this determination from Ochocinco that, perhaps, could be a sway those in charge – and the reason why Antonio Bryant, who is also in the mix, might miss out.

For all of Ocho’s antics, he is a dedicated and respected member of the team, and his unswerving loyalty to Owens, coupled with the duo’s long-lasting friendship, might well be the deciding factor in a possible deal.

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