Tom Cruise and T.O.: Leading Parallel Lives

When we think of Tom Cruise, do we first think about his good looks in Top Gun and overall success in Hollywood or his wacko outburst on Oprah's sofa and obsession with Scientology? Sure, Tom Cruise has starred in some major Hollywood hits - "Risky Business", "Top Gun", "Mission Impossible", and "Jerry Maguire" (the list goes on...) - but he remains a serious liability to any studio that signs him for a movie. In 2006, Paramount even dropped ties with the star, because they did not believe that he was worth the risk (or thepaycheck). Studios are no longer as willing to pay Cruise the big bucks he demands, because they do not trust him as a person to maintain an image that will promise success for the film.

NFL player Terrell Owens, whom we all know from "The T.O. Show" on VH1, is the Tom Cruise of football. No one contends that Terrell Owens is a great wide receiver and adds value to the teams that he plays on. Yet, like Cruise, Owens antics are a liability. His ego rattles his teammates and his touchdown dances offend players, owners and the league. Where team cohesion is critical to success in the NFL, what team would be willing to risk bringing T.O. into the mix?

Well, the Cincinnati Bengals, just took the risk and signed free agent T.O. to a 1 year $2 million deal with another $2 million in incentives (meaning, what additional money T.O. can earn if he plays well). T.O., at 36 years of age, is getting up there and he just came off a weak season at the Buffalo Bills. More importantly, T.O. will be forced to share the stage in Cincinnati with Chad Ochocinco - a.k.a "The Ultimate Catch" on VH1 - now a teammate playing the same position. Can his ego simmer down for the game? Can he share the stage or even take a back seat?

Just as Cruise had some post-lunatic success with the box office hit "War of the Worlds," I believe T.O. will achieve the same. T.O. will unlikely be the stand out superstar of the Bengals, but I believe that he has come to a point in his life and career where he realizes that he must play for the team rather than for himself. For example, evidenced in his attempts at additional careers, i.e. modeling with Wilhelmina, and lowering his asking NFL contract price. (Hopefully, he will also apply this lesson to the women he dates as his repeated relationships on the T.O. show could not get more self-centered and pathetic.) Yet, the Bengals team is also a good place for him - the team is used to managing egomaniacs and fortunately have a veteran quarterback, Carson Palmer, to keep them all in line.

T.O. needs to put a shirt on, oh yea, and realize that his time on Bengals may be the last chance he gets in the NFL, so not to treat it like "The T.O. Show."