# Terell Owens shoots himself in the foot yet again **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [November 4, 2005, 6:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terell-owens-shoots-himself-in-the-foot-yet-again/329443 "2005-11-04T06:42:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2005, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terell-owens-shoots-himself-in-the-foot-yet-again/329443/81 "2005-11-07T21:06:18Z")
**Maureen** my dear, I just gotta love a woman with such able fingers. ---
**Author:** ![Lord\_Ashtar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ea924/32.png) [@Lord\_Ashtar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lord_Ashtar)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2005, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terell-owens-shoots-himself-in-the-foot-yet-again/329443/82 "2005-11-07T21:06:35Z")
> [@lieu](#): > > [Reid just shitcanned T.O. for the season, saying he won’t be back.](http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=2216703) Good. Fuck him. ---
**Author:** ![lno](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/a8b319/32.png) [@lno](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lno)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2005, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terell-owens-shoots-himself-in-the-foot-yet-again/329443/83 "2005-11-07T21:09:04Z")
And now I pick him up for peanuts in the keeper fantasy league, banking a late-round draft pick on the hopes that he’ll end up catching a few balls for the first half of next year before he gets benched again. ---
**Author:** ![Syntropy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/65b543/32.png) [@Syntropy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Syntropy)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2005, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terell-owens-shoots-himself-in-the-foot-yet-again/329443/84 "2005-11-07T21:13:45Z")
> [@lieu](#): > > **Maureen** my dear, I just gotta love a woman with such able fingers. High praise, sir. :o ---
**Author:** ![Lissa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lissa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lissa)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2005, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terell-owens-shoots-himself-in-the-foot-yet-again/329443/85 "2005-11-07T21:16:48Z")
> [@Diogenes the Cynic](#): > > As someone who followed Randy Moss’ career pretty closely as a Vikings fan, I have to say that one thing I never remember him doing is trashing his teammates. He was allegedly a pretty good guy in the locker room. I also don’t remember him complaining about his contract. I think his rep as an asshole was greatly exaggerated and were based on about three or four incidents that were relatively minor compared to some of the stuff that’s happened with Owens. Aslo, did he not hang out with Carter on the Vikings who mentored him? His openness to mentoring from one of the greatest gentlemen receivers of all time says a lot. Randy leanred alot of these lessons in college though. Much of his rep came from there. ---
**Author:** ![Enginerd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/bcef8e/32.png) [@Enginerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enginerd)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2005, 9:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terell-owens-shoots-himself-in-the-foot-yet-again/329443/86 "2005-11-07T21:47:37Z")
> [@Lissa](#): > > Aslo, did he not hang out with Carter on the Vikings who mentored him? His openness to mentoring from one of the greatest gentlemen receivers of all time says a lot. Was there a different Cris Carter playing in Minnesota then? I’ve heard a lot of descriptions of Carter, but “gentleman receiver” is a first. ---
**Author:** ![Ponder\_Stibbons](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ponder_stibbons/32/343_2.png) [@Ponder\_Stibbons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ponder_Stibbons)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2005, 10:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terell-owens-shoots-himself-in-the-foot-yet-again/329443/87 "2005-11-07T22:08:51Z")
> [@Enginerd](#): > > Was there a different Cris Carter playing in Minnesota then? I’ve heard a lot of descriptions of Carter, but “gentleman receiver” is a first. Indeed. But I guess in comparison to T.O., _anyone_’s a “gentleman”. ---
**Author:** ![Snooooopy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ee7513/32.png) [@Snooooopy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snooooopy)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2005, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terell-owens-shoots-himself-in-the-foot-yet-again/329443/88 "2005-11-07T22:35:38Z")
I eagerly await Terrell’s next interview. What wacky reasons will he come up with to explain why this couldn’t POSSIBLY be his fault? ---
**Author:** ![brianjedi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3be4f8/32.png) [@brianjedi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brianjedi)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2005, 10:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terell-owens-shoots-himself-in-the-foot-yet-again/329443/89 "2005-11-07T22:44:09Z")
Who’s really stupid and/or desperate enough to take a chance on TO after this season? And will they have enough cap room to satisfy his demands? I don’t see any team other than Oakland who would even think about signing him, and even then, there’s no way to get the ball to Moss, Porter and TO enough without putting the ball in the air 80 times a game. ---
**Author:** ![rockle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/73ab20/32.png) [@rockle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rockle)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2005, 10:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terell-owens-shoots-himself-in-the-foot-yet-again/329443/90 "2005-11-07T22:48:01Z")
> [@Ponder Stibbons](#): > > Indeed. But I guess in comparison to T.O., _anyone_’s a “gentleman”. Sean Salisbury said today (I think it was today) that, compared to T.O., Barry Bonds looks like a “choirboy.” _Barry fucking **Bonds**._ Did you hear that loud popping sound? That was my brain exploding. ---
**Author:** ![Jimmy\_Chitwood](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f475e1/32.png) [@Jimmy\_Chitwood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jimmy_Chitwood)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2005, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terell-owens-shoots-himself-in-the-foot-yet-again/329443/91 "2005-11-07T23:25:19Z")
> [@furt](#): > > Hot soft **BULLSHIT**. As has been explained innumerable times, when you average in the various bonuses, his contract is right in line with the other top WRs. His salary was only low if you accept Rosenhaus logic and measure this year’s salary alone – as if he didn’t just get a huge signing bonus a year ago. Over the total life of the contract, he was set to be one of the best paid players at his position. > > If you want to argue that he needs to be paid #1 every single year so that he doesn’t feel “dissed,” or that he needs to be paid like a QB, knock yourself out. But the idea that he has been nickel-and-dimed is bullshit. > > Shit. Tom Fucking Brady won’t make 8 million this year. I’m not sure A) what you’re being so patronizing in this or the subsequent parts of your post, or B) why you think I’m arguing that they gave TO a lousy contract over the life of the contract. I don’t believe that’s the case. I said that they set themselves up for trouble this year by setting up the contract so that he would seem like he was making peanuts this year. You sort of made my point even while you were condescending to me. By Rosenhaus’ and Owens’ logic, TO got fucked in his contract this year. TO’s a whore, and they should have known that this had a pretty high likelihood of happening. Admittedly, nickel-and-dime left room for misinterpretation – what I meant was simply that they didn’t go out of their way to make it clear they were giving Mr. Superstar superstar money. It’s the whole thing about dealing with irrational actors – it’s silly to say, well, a normal guy would see that so far in his deal, he’s made X amount, so he’s not really being underpaid this season, because it’s silly to be surprised by an asshole being an asshole. In my opinion, the Eagles should have either gone out of their way to keep TO happy, or not bothered to sign him at all, because when the team falls apart, even if you’re right, the team still falls apart. Maybe that’s too much Tuesday morning quarterbacking, I don’t know. I don’t feel like I should respond to the rest of it in detail, since I probably won’t be able to do so without being more of a dick than I’m already being. Suffice to say that I understand the Eagles’ philosophy and what they do with their cap money, but I’m pretty sure that _other_ team you’re talking about has won a Super Bowl or two, and I’m pretty sure that this shit isn’t working for the Eagles at the moment. They could have paid TO more base money over the years they planned to keep him, and it would have been an OK time to make an exception, is all I’m saying. It’s one thing when your core players are good enough to win the Super Bowl without a huge addition, like in New England’s case. I think the giant difference is that the Eagles were firmly one level below that rung when they went after TO, so applying the exact same philosophy doesn’t work for me. The Patriots haven’t really needed anybody from outside like the Eagles needed a wideout. A little tiny bit of fat in the cap seems like an OK trade if you think you can keep the chemistry going for another year. TO being on the field really makes such a huge difference that anything they could have done to keep him out there (obviously without letting him do exactly what he ended up doing) would have been good. I am surprised that you’ve heard the Eagles had intentions to keep him for year three, though. I hadn’t seen that, and from what I understand the structure of the contract was such that year two was the out year. I seriously doubt that I’ll be able to cite that, though. Sorry. > [@lieu](#): > > Roy Williams is a class act on the field, to his teammates in the locker room and most notable in the community where he does a lot of volunteer work. > > Course, if you want to call one of the more respected players in the NFL a “bitch” for knocking your whiny, divisive, selfish player, who’s actions you’re doing a lousy job of justifying, out for part of the season then go ahead. The Pats beat T.O. and the Eagles despite his good performance in the game. Even at 100% your precious, myopically viewed Eagle still lose. Wow, you I’ll be a dick to. What the fuck are you responding to? Do me a favor. Give me a little nudge in the right direction. Where did these attempts to justify anything occur? Christ almighty, if you don’t want to read it, don’t read it, but you don’t have to jump in with this kneejerk community service bullshit just because I mentioned a Cowboy. I guess _was_ doing a lousy job of justifying his actions, considering that he turns my stomach, and he’s done a pretty good job of turning my favorite team into a running joke. The Roy Williams “tackle” was a cheap bullshit move that causes an injury more often than not, and it’s now rightly outlawed. I don’t really care about Roy Williams, for god’s sake… if it makes you feel better I retract the “bitch” and I’d like to insert “cheapshot artist.” > [@](#): > > With comments like these, Jimmy, it’s apparent that you don’t wish to be taken very seriously. No kidding? Maybe I should head over to MPSIMS and make some poop jokes, right? Improve my standing here in this fine community? > [@Breakdancing Duck](#): > > Funny how in your little speech there you forget one thing: Owens quite willingly signed the contract with the Eagles last year that quite clearly and definitively laid out how much he would be paid. > > It’s not the Eagles fault for paying him as little as they did, it is all on Owens to shriek and bleat for more money, especially with Drew Rosenhaus as his agent. Yeah, I should have said something to the effect of “It’s also fantastic that they can sit firmly on the high ground and point to the fact that TO signed the contract, but they had to know that a 2005 salary of $3.5 million wasn’t going to make Owens happy when it came down to it” to make clear that I recognize that the Eagles are in the right. It would have been better if I hadn’t ignored that part, and had mentioned it. Also, Duck and lieu, I said that the Eagles would have had a pretty good chance to win the Super Bowl. Was that language too strong for you guys? They lost by three with him coming straight off of rehab, and I point out they would have had a _pretty good_ chance to win if he was healthy, and that bothers you? Hell, they had a pretty good chance to win even with TO at 80%. Still, I can’t deny that, since it seems like nobody understood the point I was trying to make, I must not have done a very good job at making it. Here it is in brief, since I’m really not interested in going back and forth about this, and since I really don’t want to talk about TO anymore: any team that signs a guy who is well-known as a prick would do well to take precautions when doing so. Such precautions include not giving the guy the opportunity to **pretend** that he’s underpaid, because if you give a guy like this the chance, he’ll fuck up your whole day. If you aren’t willing to treat a primadonna like a primadonna, you shouldn’t go after primadonnas in the first place (and there’s nothing wrong with that philosophy). I’m sorry that I ruined all your days with my nonstop TO fanboy gushing. ---
**Author:** ![BooBoo316](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e0b2c6/32.png) [@BooBoo316](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BooBoo316)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2005, 11:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terell-owens-shoots-himself-in-the-foot-yet-again/329443/92 "2005-11-07T23:28:42Z")
> [@Ponder Stibbons](#): > > Indeed. But I guess in comparison to T.O., _anyone_’s a “gentleman”. LOL. Damn if that’s not the _definition_ of faint praise. “You know, compared to this complete asshole, you’re a pretty nice guy.” 😃 ---
**Author:** ![BigDummy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ee59a6/32.png) [@BigDummy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigDummy)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2005, 11:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terell-owens-shoots-himself-in-the-foot-yet-again/329443/93 "2005-11-07T23:32:13Z")
Wow. I still think that last year’s playoffs proved they can win with mediocre receivers and don’t necessarily need a TO, but without Pinkston those guys don’t even make it to mediocre. On the field he definitely made them better, but this year with Pinkston out & McNabb hurt they weren’t that great with him, and may be outright bad without him. But you just can’t get down on team mates, especially in the press. I just wonder how many more the iggles can lose before they do call it a season and let McNabb get his surgery. So, where does he go now? Some thoughts off the top of my head (or pulled from somewhere else), feel free to discuss. Places he’s already really burned his bridges: SF Philly Baltimore Dallas ??? Jones will pick-up players that the fans hated on other teams, like Deion & Charles Haley, but I think Owens made it way too personal. Parcells certainly wouldn’t want the headache. Places already known to cut bad character guys: Tampa (Keyshawn) Indy ??? Dungy cut some with the Bucs (Sapp’s a bit of an a-hole, but a pretty good good team guy) Places that just won’t want that kind of nonsense. NE – Belichick wouldn’t have it. Giants ??? Jax ??? Green Bay ??? Considering the stance they took with Walker Places that don’t need him. Oakland Detroit ??? unless they’re just collecting receivers Cincinnati ??? They have a pretty good receiver already. Places he might want to go. Atlanta – Him & Vick? Don’t know if McKay wants the trouble though. Green Bay – He seems to be in love with Favre at the moment. But considering the stance they took with Walker, do they pull that trigger? Places that might be desperate enough. Houston ??? But he would eat Carr alive. Tennesee ??? Arizona Cleveland – Would Crennel put up with it??? N.O. ??? Think he and Horn could live together? Or maybe a trade. Hmm. Minnesota ??? Where else would he fit? You’d need an already good offense but without much in the way of receivers. Oh, but then that didn’t work in Philly, did it 🙂 I don’t know. ---
**Author:** ![Harborwolf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c89c15/32.png) [@Harborwolf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harborwolf)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2005, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terell-owens-shoots-himself-in-the-foot-yet-again/329443/94 "2005-11-07T23:47:12Z")
> [@brianjedi](#): > > Who’s really stupid and/or desperate enough to take a chance on TO after this season? And will they have enough cap room to satisfy his demands? > > I don’t see any team other than Oakland who would even think about signing him, and even then, there’s no way to get the ball to Moss, Porter and TO enough without putting the ball in the air 80 times a game. Heh. I was just talking about this at work today. We all agreed that the Lions should pick him up simply because our locker room is fractured already. The defense hates the offense hates the qb hates the coach. We couldn’t think of a way for TO to make things worse. ---
**Author:** ![Gangster\_Octopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a8b319/32.png) [@Gangster\_Octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gangster_Octopus)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2005, 11:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terell-owens-shoots-himself-in-the-foot-yet-again/329443/95 "2005-11-07T23:53:54Z")
> [@BigDummy](#): > > Wow. I still think that last year’s playoffs proved they can win with mediocre receivers and don’t necessarily need a TO, but without Pinkston those guys don’t even make it to mediocre. On the field he definitely made them better, but this year with Pinkston out & McNabb hurt they weren’t that great with him, and may be outright bad without him. But you just can’t get down on team mates, especially in the press. I just wonder how many more the iggles can lose before they do call it a season and let McNabb get his surgery. > > So, where does he go now? Some thoughts off the top of my head (or pulled from somewhere else), feel free to discuss. > Places he’s already really burned his bridges: > SF > Philly > Baltimore > Dallas ??? Jones will pick-up players that the fans hated on other teams, like Deion & Charles Haley, but I think Owens made it way too personal. Parcells certainly wouldn’t want the headache. > > Places already known to cut bad character guys: > Tampa (Keyshawn) > Indy ??? Dungy cut some with the Bucs (Sapp’s a bit of an a-hole, but a pretty good good team guy) > > Places that just won’t want that kind of nonsense. > NE – Belichick wouldn’t have it. > Giants ??? > Jax ??? > Green Bay ??? Considering the stance they took with Walker > > Places that don’t need him. > Oakland > Detroit ??? unless they’re just collecting receivers > Cincinnati ??? They have a pretty good receiver already. > > Places he might want to go. > Atlanta – Him & Vick? Don’t know if McKay wants the trouble though. > Green Bay – He seems to be in love with Favre at the moment. But considering the stance they took with Walker, do they pull that trigger? > > Places that might be desperate enough. > Houston ??? But he would eat Carr alive. > Tennesee ??? > Arizona > Cleveland – Would Crennel put up with it??? > N.O. ??? Think he and Horn could live together? Or maybe a trade. Hmm. > Minnesota ??? > Where else would he fit? You’d need an already good offense but without much in the way of receivers. Oh, but then that didn’t work in Philly, did it 🙂 I don’t know. Denver maybe? They could use the go-to guy reciever, Rod Smith is older and can’t be relied on to be the game-breaker. Ashley Lelei is a bust. And Shanahan is not above taking a chance on trouble guys. He might give T.O. a chance, but with a short rope I suspect. ---
**Author:** ![Frank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Frank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2005, 12:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terell-owens-shoots-himself-in-the-foot-yet-again/329443/96 "2005-11-08T00:03:57Z")
> [@Gangster Octopus](#): > > Denver maybe? They could use the go-to guy reciever, Rod Smith is older and can’t be relied on to be the game-breaker. Ashley Lelei is a bust. And Shanahan is not above taking a chance on trouble guys. He might give T.O. a chance, but with a short rope I suspect. Not this kind of trouble guy. Add Denver to the list of places that won’t put up with him for a minute. (One of the main reasons they didn’t give Clarett more of a chance was because he turned out not to be a team guy at all.) ---
**Author:** ![furt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/439d5e/32.png) [@furt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/furt)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2005, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terell-owens-shoots-himself-in-the-foot-yet-again/329443/97 "2005-11-08T00:04:23Z")
> [@Breakdancing Duck](#): > > Try paying attention, dolt. :wally :wally > > During the weeks leading up to last years Super Bowl, Freddie “The People’s Champion” Mitchell was bleating about how he "_got something for the Patriots secondary_ and was hyped as one of the great recievers in the league. Ummm. Your point is? He was not a great or even good reciever; nobody who knew anything about the game would think otherwise. By the time the SB came around, he had been moved down to #4 on the WR depth chart – if it wasn’t for TO being injured, Mitchell wouldn’t have even been on the field in the playoffs. The fact that credulous people mistake someone who can get quoted for someone that can get open doesn’t change that. He was not a key part of their offense all year; the fact that he also wasn’t productive in the SB was nothing new. Ergo, asserting that his being shut out was the decisive factor in the defeat is absurd. It’s rather like claiming the Braves lost the 1992 World Series because Francisco Cabrera didn’t get a hit. :wally yourself. ---
**Author:** ![Jimmy\_Chitwood](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f475e1/32.png) [@Jimmy\_Chitwood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jimmy_Chitwood)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2005, 12:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terell-owens-shoots-himself-in-the-foot-yet-again/329443/98 "2005-11-08T00:07:26Z")
In addition to which, if all it takes to be considered “hyped” as something is to say it yourself, then I’d like to announce that all the hype is true – I have the world’s largest penis. ---
**Author:** ![Gangster\_Octopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a8b319/32.png) [@Gangster\_Octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gangster_Octopus)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2005, 12:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terell-owens-shoots-himself-in-the-foot-yet-again/329443/99 "2005-11-08T00:13:13Z")
> [@This Year's Model](#): > > Not this kind of trouble guy. Add Denver to the list of places that won’t put up with him for a minute. (One of the main reasons they didn’t give Clarett more of a chance was because he turned out not to be a team guy at all.) I think the fact that they took Clarrett in the first place is evidence that they are not necessarily above takinga guy like this. I think it is just evidence that they would not tolerate his antics for long. ---
**Author:** ![Syntropy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/65b543/32.png) [@Syntropy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Syntropy)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2005, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terell-owens-shoots-himself-in-the-foot-yet-again/329443/100 "2005-11-08T00:16:41Z")
> [@This Year's Model](#): > > Not this kind of trouble guy. Add Denver to the list of places that won’t put up with him for a minute. (One of the main reasons they didn’t give Clarett more of a chance was because he turned out not to be a team guy at all.) Yeah, Mike Shanahan (he of the insane eyeballs) doesn’t put up with egos. He left Oakland because of massive ego problems (Al Davis’ being only one of them) and won’t allow a problem to develop in Denver. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terell-owens-shoots-himself-in-the-foot-yet-again/329443.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/terell-owens-shoots-himself-in-the-foot-yet-again/329443.md?page=6)