Bryant and Owens

[Tenkamenin]

IMHO along with Rice #1 it's hard to argue anybody other than Moss/Owens as the top 3 WRs of the modern era.

Irvin if he had played longer would be in the discussion.

Obviously Don Hutson is still often part of these conversations however personally I find it impossible to really evaluate legends of yester-year to guys from the modern era.

Irvin's 99 season was going to be epic had he not gotten injured in Philly. I was so sure we were going to the superbowl that year....Painful times!

 

[DallasDomination]

I remember when we first got T.O Bledsoe threw a bomb and T.O adjusted hell knows how for td in the end zone. The guy was a deep threat and had stamina for days! I will always respect T.O the player.

 

[Tabascocat]

If T.O didn't have a ten cent head, he could have possibly been the best WR ever, or at least arguable. He had all of the tools excluding the mental aspect.

 

[LittleBoyBlue]

TO came here when he was like 33 years old so he was entering his twilight years, but he was still faster than most players and was extremely football smart in terms of route running and recognizing coverages and knowing how to get himself open.

When he was younger in San Francisco he was unstoppable. Maybe the greatest run after catch receiver ever. He could run wild through a secondary just because of how much bigger faster and stronger he was than DBs.

But Dez is the more natural pass catcher. He's also still very young and the mental part will only continue to improve as he ages.

To add:

- both are animal with ball in their hands
- both have nose for end zone. They want to get soooo bad
- Dez has much better hands. TO made some amazing catches but then dropped easy ones.
- TO could fly but couldn't fight for ball vs DB, Dez can... Does
- very similar fire. Dez is a controlled demolition whereas TO isn't.... He would take down his building and all surrounding buildings too. Leave a wake of devastation.

 

[sideon]

TO = Better route runner, Faster, Great YAC receiver & knew every single play in the playbook.

Dez = Better hands, Stronger, Will go across the middle, Unselfish & more athletic.

 

[Idgit]

Owens had a top gear that was just insane. Dez is more agile in terms of getting his body in position to get the catch or to stay in bounds. As far as route running goes, early in his career it was a problem for Dez not knowing what to do, but the book on Owens even in Dallas was that he knew the routes, but that he'd consistently break them off and run to day light and hope/expect/have a fit if the QB didn't see it and accommodate him. Now, a lot of *that* was because he knew damn well he would make a big play if the QB saw it, and he could. But it lead to a lot of picks for him not being where he was supposed to be. So, if you know the route and the adjustments and just won't run them...well, that's the same thing as not knowing them at all.
I think, back allowing, we're going to see Dez have a stretch here where you see Dez's career get into that rarified territory TO lived in for so long. TO's high-mark for TDs is 15. Dez has 14 right now, and has crept up 12, 13, 14 the last three years. Same average Y/G for both players. Remarkably close for both at this point, actually.

TO was the epitome of what I like to see in a WR on game day. And was poisonous enough that he was not worth retaining on a roster, regardless. Dez is 1000x the teammate TO was, even on a winning team. I don't think there's really any question about that.

 

[Red Dragon]

If Owens had behaved himself, maybe he'd still have been a Cowboy in 2010 and 2011.

Owens and Dez on the same offense? BOOM.

 

[DejectedFan1996]

TO = Better route runner, Faster, Great YAC receiver & knew every single play in the playbook.

Dez = Better hands, Stronger, Will go across the middle, Unselfish & more athletic.

Owens went across the middle...a lot. Might be getting confused with Randy Moss

 

[SDCowboy]

I just want to say the chemistry Romo and Dez have this season is off the charts.

 

[LatinMind]

Oh it was Owens fault too., no doubt.

But Parcells acted like a complete baby about the whole thing, and ostracized him by calling him "the player", and not talking to him, etc.

Instead of taking on a father figure to him, which would have been exactly what Owens needed, .. he made him feel like an outcast, and never welcomed him. That would have worked wonders with a kid with Owens background.

Dez wouldve never survived Parcells

 

[gimmesix]

Dez has superior hands, probably a better blocker, and motivator.

Also, even though Owens was bigger and faster, Dez is probably harder to tackle. I would say Dez is more physical with his stiff arm.

I think Dez is more physical, period. Where Owens had trouble is when they doubled him and the first defender jammed him hard to knock him off his route.

Owens' speed for a big receiver is what made him the most dangerous. Corners had to respect his ability to blow by them. Bryant doesn't really blow by many corners on go routes, but if he gets the edge, he's going to go get the ball.

I don't know which is the better receiver, but it's easy to determine which is the better teammate, which makes Bryant the better player.

 

[jblaze2004]

T.O was strong as a OX and was pretty fast. TO was a beast. Dez is strong but idk if he is as strong T.O was. Dez has better hands. T.O was more of a body catcher.

 

[DFWJC]

Not saying I agree with it, but

"RANKER" has the top 10 listed in this order:

1) Jerry Rice
2) Randy Moss
3) Chris Carter
4) Calvin Johnson
5) Michael Irvin
6) Marvin Harrison
7) Steve Largent
8) Terrell Owens
9) Larry Fitzgerald
10) Tim Brown

 

[Doomsday101]

Before you all get your panties in a bunch this thread is not to argue who is the better player now or by the end of their career. I was talking with a friend about how awesome bryant and romo have been lately and he brought up how awesome Owens and romo were during their tenure as well. Lo and behold when I try to think back to Owens tenure here it's somewhat of a blur for me so I would like to request for some/all of you to remind me. Obviously Owens was a physical freak during his tenure in the NFL similar to bryant but I don't remember what were his strengths and weaknesses were and how he compares to Bryant. Romo had the privilege to throw to both these guys and despite how you feel about Owens off the field, I think it's safe to say he was a stud on the field. As stated previously what are each player's strengths and weaknesss compared to each other (such as athleticism, pass catching, blocking, route running etc) and do not include any off the field stuff, I am strictly referring to each players performance on the field. Thanks in advance and merry Christmas

I see more of a comparison with Bryant and Irvin than I do with Owens.

 

[Ken]

Agree with most of this however I think you are understanding how big a piece YAC is to the success of NFL WRs. This is one area, for whatever reason, Dez is just average. Case in point Dez ranks 33rd in the NFL in YAC this season.

Which is shocking and inexplicable...

Dez is big and strong and refuses t go down. He is a great punt returner. He was good his first couple of years in yac if memory serves...

I don't understand why he is not better at yac...

 

[Craig]

Owens was physically gifted, incredibly smart, and would bleed for you on the field. The problem was that he had a mouth and could drop a pass right to his hands 2 plays after making an impossible catch. His reputation was way worse than his reality.

 

[jazzcat22]

Dez needs 25 million reasons X 4 as he has shown why he will be better than TO when it's all done.

 

[perrykemp]

Which is shocking and inexplicable...

Dez is big and strong and refuses t go down. He is a great punt returner. He was good his first couple of years in yac if memory serves...

I don't understand why he is not better at yac...

Hard to say -- my unscientific theory is Dez is thicker than he was his first couple of years -- and frankly doesn't look quite as flexible. When I say thicker I mean more muscular. It makes him strong but generally less escapable.

The strength benefits him greatly in the end-zone, however, does hurt his YAC and his ability to separate a bit.

 

[sideon]

Owens went across the middle...a lot. Might be getting confused with Randy Moss

Only on clear outs when he knew there would be space, whereas Dez will go across the middle no matter what.

 

[darthseinfeld]

Statistically Owens is top 3 all time, but I don't think as a whole he is a top 3 receiver all time. He would still be high on the list, but there are several other receivers I would rank higher than him.

One thing with Owens that gets overshadowed by the fabled broken leg in the 2004 SB was that he was very soft in the post season. He wasnt a guy that really got up for challenges. He was like that in SF and like that in Dallas