Big Dakota
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Hostile;2669139 said:http://www.dallascowboys.com/news/news.cfm?id=D55E3897-C77E-786C-C621AFAD56EC9DF4
Looks Like T.O. Gone
Reports Claim Owens Released; Cowboys Mum
Josh Ellis
DallasCowboys.com Staff Writer
March 5, 2009 12:38 AM
Owens signed a four-year, $34 million extension last summer.
IRVING, Texas - The Dallas Cowboys released wide receiver Terrell Owens Wednesday night, according to an ESPN report citing two sources, the club apparently ending more than two months of off-season speculation.
As of midnight (CST), though, no team official would confirm the report or offer comment.
Following the disappointing end to the 2008 season a number of team sources told various media outlets the organization was split on the controversial receiver's status. Cowboys owner and general manager Jerry Jones downplayed speculation the club was discussing a potential release of Owens. As recently as last weekend Jones was shrugging off direct questions about the reports.
"You and I both know that the one you're asking about all the time, if I gave you the answer that you want to hear, then you would have already had it," Jones said during a Feb. 17 press conference to announce a George Strait concert to open the new Cowboys Stadium on June 6. "So the fact you don't have it ought to tell you something."
As recent as last Thursday Cowboys executive vice president Stephen Jones would not comment on Owens' status, and parried a question by saying, "I didn't say that anything like that, did I?"
Stephen Jones also disputed accusations he was trying to convince his father, Jerry Jones, to release Owens and that the two were at odds over the decision.
"That's absolutely incorrect," Stephen Jones said. "That's all I'll tell you. That's incorrect. We have our discussions but we never had - we're on the same page, I can assure you of that."
Apparently the team decided Owens' negative impact on the locker room weighed heavier than his three straight 1,000-yard, double-digit touchdown seasons. The outspoken receiver was often at the center of turmoil during his time in Dallas - from his first training camp with the team to the very end. Owens grabbed headlines for wearing a Tour de France-style cycling outfit while rehabbing a camp injury during his lone season with Bill Parcells in 2006, and most recently reports claimed he was irritated by quarterback Tony Romo's relationship with tight end Jason Witten.
Heading into the final year of his initial three-year contract with the team, the Cowboys inked Owens to a four-year, $34 million extension last summer that included a $13 million signing bonus. If the reports are accurate, Owens' accelerated prorated signing bonus will count $9.6 million against the team's salary cap this year, sending the team's total of dead money for this season to nearly $15 million against the $127 million salary cap.
That number would soar close to $20 million if the Cowboys decide to trade or release strong safety Roy Williams, who would count another $4.4 million against the cap.
The Cowboys now have five receivers remaining on the roster. They traded three 2009 draft picks to Detroit for Roy Williams six weeks into last season, and still have five-year veteran Patrick Crayton, as well as two three-year veterans in Miles Austin and Sam Hurd. Isaiah Stanback is heading into his third year with the club.
WoW, it's like that great sceen in Godfather II where Michael settles all scores in one fell swoop.
