Attention-seeking wide receiver Terrell Owens has signed with the Cincinnati Bengals, where he will pair with perhaps the only NFL player more flamboyant than him, Chad Ochocinco.

It's like Lindsay Lohan getting hitched to Mel Gibson.

Have we ever seen a team with two more fascinating and egotistical characters?

T.O., one of the game's best receivers, has been the focal point of failed efforts in San Francisco, Philadelphia and Dallas. In each of those places, he's worn out his welcome with his outspoken nature and willingness to throw teammates under the bus.

Ochocinco (birth name Chad Johnson) has been one of the NFL's true characters these past few years - he tops most "biggest showboats in pro sports" lists and has his own dating reality show on VH1 - yet he's also a superb player, having played in six Pro Bowls.

Both receivers have a knack for making big plays, and with strong-armed Carson Palmer throwing, Bengals fans are hoping for a double dose of excitement, especially in the end zone.

After all, that's where the real fun starts, since both men are superbly creative when it comes to the post-touchdown celebration.

Ochocinco has done the Riverdance, used the end zone pylon as a golf club and asked for a cheerleader's hand in marriage. T.O. has done situps, held up signs and famously pulled a Sharpie pen out of his socks, signed a football and handed it to a friend in the crowd.

(Click here for ESPN's top ten touchdown celebrations. T.O. and Ochocinco dominate the list.)

What makes this move intriguing is that Cincinnati, despite being the defending AFC North champion, is not that far removed from being the biggest outlaw team in the NFL. Between 2006 and 2007, no fewer than six Bengals were arrested, for crimes ranging from burglary to disorderly conduct to "boating under the influence." The late Chris Henry was arrested five times during that stretch.

Already this year, running back Cedric Benson has been charged with assault, although head coach Marvin Lewis claims he was "sucker punched," while wide receiver Maurice Purify was arrested after a disturbance in a local bar.

Now I'm not suggesting that Ochocinco or T.O. are in the criminal category. They aren't. In fact, they both appear to be good citizens, although not always good teammates (See my "The Disrupters" column on BPL under 'Other Sports').

In fact, if this works, it could be genius. Ochocinco hasn't been the same since fellow star receiver T.J. Houshmandzadeh left for Seattle. Perhaps Owens is the missing piece that can make the offense click and free up Johnson to exploit opposing defenses.

But what if it doesn't work? What if T.O. isn't willing to share the catches - and the limelight - with Ochocinco? Will this become another chapter in the trials and tribulations of the Cincinnati Bengals? Another failed experiment with a couple of questionable characters who didn't gel with the rest of the team?

The Raiders used to pride themselves on being the baddest of the bad, with a roster full of head cases and mad men that you'd hate to meet even in a brightly-lit alley.

But they won three Super Bowls. The Bengals have won none and haven't been in the big game since 1989.