jterrell;2440111 said:
We are saying JTT was and remains to be an idiot for stating T.O couldn't play football. He clearly can.
Here's the column. All he is saying is that Owens has shown some slippage, especially when teams press him. He doesn't say he "couldn't play football," or is "washed up," as Braveheart said.
Everybody has agendas.
Dallas Cowboys need to give Owens lesser role
IRVING – Terrell Owens' pedestrian numbers – 40 catches, 505 yards, six touchdowns and no 100-yard games – don't lie.
Not after 10 games.
You expect more from a player who received a $12 million signing bonus and contract extension before the season. Maybe we shouldn't have.
Perhaps T.O. simply isn't as good as he used to be.
We all know T.O., who turns 35 on Dec. 7, will never admit to that. Nor would he ever admit to losing a step. The great ones rarely do.
That's among the reasons Jerry Rice's career ended in a Denver Broncos training camp, and why Emmitt Smith finished his career as a plodder in Arizona, averaging significantly less than 4.0 yards per carry.
Why do you think the Cowboys acquired Roy Williams in the first place? It gave Jerry Jones a No. 1 receiver capable of replacing T.O. when he could no longer handle the role.
That moment has arrived.
T.O. is still an effective player, but he's not the Cowboys' best receiver.
This is not about T.O. ranking among the top 10 all-time in career receptions, yards and touchdowns. We know T.O. has been a great player. And we know there's a good chance he'll wind up in the Hall of Fame one day.
None of that has anything to do with the 2008 season.
Jason Garrett should immediately make Williams the focal point of the Cowboys' passing game, starting today against San Francisco. T.O. should be a complementary player in Garrett's scheme, and Tony Romo should quit forcing T.O. the ball.
If T.O doesn't like that or can't handle it, too bad
T.O. is struggling, so he's blaming the same offensive system he used to get to the Pro Bowl and set a franchise record for touchdowns last season. T.O. likes to say he can't throw it to himself and catch it, which might have been true with Brad Johnson at quarterback, but it doesn't explain his mediocre production in the other seven games.
The coaching staff wants answers, so Garrett moved him around the formation and put him in motion during last week's win against Washington. He finished with five catches for 38 yards.
For the fourth time in five games, he didn't score a touchdown.
T.O. always says it's about the team. Well, here's his chance to prove it. Take a lower profile for the good of the team.
Do you think Zach Thomas likes being a two-down player after a career of hardly ever leaving the field? I doubt it, but he's keeping whatever complaints he might have to himself.
T.O.'s self-indulgent nature won't allow him to do that, just as his ego won't let him admit he bears some responsibility for his lack of production.
At 6-3 and 226 pounds of sinewy muscle, T.O. is a finesse player until he gets the ball in his hands, which is why he struggles against press coverage even when journeyman cornerbacks are doing it.
He's not open as much as he thinks. Every elite receiver in the league gets double-covered, but they find ways to get open while T.O. whines about not getting enough passes thrown his way. He also drops too many passes and doesn't make enough tough catches in traffic.
Anyone who has watched Williams in college or with Detroit knows he has the ability to dominate a game. Anyone who has watched him since he arrived in Dallas can see he's more fluid than T.O.
He has better hands and runs good routes. He's big, strong and fast. All he needs is more time to develop a rapport with Romo.
Williams represents the future. The future is now.
