Results tagged “Terrell” from Robert Littal Presents The Infamous BlackSportsOnline

You might love T.O., you might hate T.O., but whatever your feelings are for Terrell Owens the one thing you have to give him credit for he is damn entertaining.

There hasn't been this much excitement in Buffalo since they invented the Buffalo Wing.

Back in 2006, Terrell Owens set the sports world on fire by daring to compare himself to a few sports legends with the following quote:

"I'm not Superman. I'm human. Michael Jordan doesn't make every shot. Jerry [Rice] hasn't caught every pass. Tiger [Woods] doesn't make every putt. I understand the expectations of me. People want me to catch every ball. The likelihood of that happening is not going to be great. I understand that."

Now, because America's sportswriters are always looking to find fault with Terrell Owens, they were up in arms about that statement. "How dare he compare himself to Jerry Rice, Tiger Woods, and Michael Jordan! He can't even put himself in the same sentence as those guys!"

Fast forward to April 9, 2009, when Terrell Owens said the following quote:

"Other than that, I'm fine. I've been called selfish pretty much throughout my career. I think I'm in good company, Jerry Rice has been called selfish before, as well as a number of other guys."

I wrote about this in 2006 and I'm going to write about it again, mostly because I hate sportswriters. I'm not going to pretend that Terrell Owens is an angel or a model teammate, but once again, they're really reaching with this. You'll see that what I said in 2006 is pretty much going to be identical to what I say today:

On Monday the 16th one of the main headlines on ESPN.com was:

The most important word in that sentence is "Voluntary", but if you read the story and watched the various ESPN talking heads (Mort, Clayton, NFL Live and etc) you would have thought T.O. had skipped out on the first game of the season.

It wasn't a big deal. The Bills didn't think it was a big deal. Terrell Owens is one of the best conditioned athletes not just in the NFL but in the world. Missing a "voluntary" condition workout is not going to hurt him.

I believe most people realized it was a non-story even while some in the media were trying to make it into a bigger story than it was. I decided not to even write about because it was a waste of time and didn't want to give the story any legs, but this information was passed on to me.

It appears the reason that T.O. didn't make it to the "voluntary" workout because he was receiving an award. Of course this was buried on page 97 of ESPN.com with no accompanying videos from any talking heads. You might be asking what the award that Owens' received was. Just read for yourself.

Wow. Buffalo. And don't be fooled by that fake smile over there, because he does not look happy about it. Might as well have exiled T.O. to Siberia. Or Kansas City. On the bright side, no one's going to see him screw up anything out there. No one saw that coming, mostly because no one even remembered that Buffalo had an NFL team.

So, yeah, Terrell Owens signed a one-year, $6.5 million deal with the Bills. The deal validates the wild claims that agent Drew Rosenhaus made when he said that T.O. would have a deal within the week, although, judging from the look on T.O.'s face during his press conference, I don't think either one of them would consider this a "win." Personally, I believed that Owens would be out of work for a few more months, at which point, teams would no longer be influenced by ESPN's "T.O. Hater Brigade", and realize that at least 15 of them had nothing to lose by signing Owens.

With respect to Jay Mariotti (and the other 87% of the media) who believe that the Bills signing of Terrell Owens is destine to fail (on a side note Jay I know you are new to this blogging thing, but if you use another blogger's YouTube video it is common courtesy to mention where you got it from) after thinking it over I think Buffalo is the perfect fit for Owens. So without further ado here are:

1- Undisputed Star

Our good friend Mike Florio at ProFootBallTalk.com and ESPN have confirmed T.O. has signed with the Buffalo Bills. I will have more of an in detailed opinion on this tomorrow but for now here are the details.

Terrell Owens has agreed to a one-year, $6.5 million deal with the Buffalo Bills, according to sources.

The Bills called a 6:15 p.m. news conference Saturday to announce the signing. According to a source, the entire contract is guaranteed.

How powerful is "Ya Boy"? literally minutes after I stated the best fit and the place I have heard T.O. was likely to land was the New Orleans Saints. Saints' Coach Sean Payton was on the radio rebuking the rumor.

Power of the Press of J. Jonah Jamieson always says.

Check out the rest of the radio sport with Dave Smith where we talk all things T.O. (as well as Donovan McNabb, Manny Ramirez & Barry Bonds). Tell me what you think. Your opinions are greatly appreciated.

So, let's see...
1. Terrell Owens, Patrick Crayton and several defensive members of the Dallas Cowboys go to Jerry Jones and call out offensive coordinator Jason Garrett, quarterback Tony Romo and tight end Jason Witten for devising plays without the offense being involved.
2. Witten stops in practice to ask Owens a question about a route, and T.O. reportedly tells Witten not to talk to him.
3. Cowboys needed one win against the Eagles in Irving, and they would have made the playoffs. They failed.
4. Rumor has it T.O. went out of his way to bad-mouth Garrett as he flew into St. Louis for an interview for the Rams' (then-)open head coaching position, costing Garrett the job.
5. Linebacker Anthony Spencer gets arrested for public intoxication just over a week after the Cowboy season ends.
6. Adam "Don't Call Me Pacman" Jones gets released from the team for an incident the NFL and the Cowboys knew about for a year.
7. T.O. and Michael Irvin each have reality shows coming out...has reality shows gotten that bad?
And, now, this...check out tight end Martellus Bennett's attempt at rapping.

P.S.: Yes, Bennett rhymes something with 'Romo,' but it's not directed at Tony.

1. A person who pretends to have virtues, moral or religious beliefs, principles, etc., that he or she does not actually possess esp. a person whose actions belie stated beliefs.

2. A person who feigns some desirable or publicly approved attitude, esp. one whose private life, opinions, or statements belie his or her public statements.

Here is Hypocrite #1

Here is Hypocrite #2

Every morning I start my daily routine like this:

• Check my email
• Check my text messages
• Go to Profootballtalk.com

As I was running through the Rumor Mill I see comments from MeShawn Johnson and Cris "Bullet" Carter regarding the Anquan Boldin incident in the NFC Championship game. Here are a few of the quotes:

From MeShawn:

"No. It's not that big of a deal," Keyshawn said. "If it was, you could see players grabbing him ... I've been with Todd Haley and I've been around Todd Haley. He coached me with the Jets. He coached me in Dallas. In our meeting rooms (he) was the worst. You would like to be a fly on that wall. I don't how we could even be in the same room; I don't know how we can get along so well. But that's just a player and a coach out there competing. I work for TV, but I hate it because they try to turn it into more than it is. And, it's not that big of a deal."

From Bullet Carter:

Did you ever believe you could throw better passes than Tony Romo? I'm sure several Cowboy fans this year did. What about believing you could catch more passes thrown to you than Terrell Owens? He dropped plenty this year, so that could have been a possibility. Or, are you the type of guy that would love to just stick a helmet in, let's say..., Eli Manning's rib cage? How about just being a guy that wants to stop being an NFL groupie and just get the ladies?

If so, Michael Irvin, Jerry Jones, and the Dallas Cowboys are giving one lucky fan the chance to do just that: a reality show of 12 people vying for the last shot at being a Cowboy for the 2009 season. Just think about it...you could line up opposite of Owens, or, as ESPN's Ed Werder might tell you, in PLACE of Owens. That might make Owens look this way...:

More after the jump...

One thing I hate is writing about the same thing over and over again, but when the same things are happening over and over I feel compelled to bring some common sense into the equation.

Let me make this point clear I have no idea if the Dallas Cowboys are going to release Terrell Owens or not. That will be a decision made by the team right or wrong. What I do know is that ESPN among others are trying to pressure the Cowboys into doing that and in turn are trying to shift blame for the Cowboys failures on Owens.

Here is the huge headline from the ESPN story ran a few days ago:

Here is the very important point I need you to pay attention to. Here is the exact quote from the "unnamed source" regarding Owens' possible release:

"The big one [Owens] didn't get discussed yet, but I'm sure it will and real hard."

So lets think about this logically. It hasn't been discussed yet, but the headline states that Dallas may release him, but if it hasn't been discussed yet, how would the source know? Isn't it more likely the source just has opinion on what he thinks will happen as oppose to any hard core facts? Why didn't Ed Werder try to contact Jerry or Stephen Jones? I think we know the answer to that

Here a link to the entire article here:

If you read it, it sounds like someone in the Cowboys organization giving an opinion of the situation. No one of authority was interview for this piece, but it was presented as hard core facts. Read the title of the story again:

Really?

Let me preface by saying this. Despite me living in Dallas, I am not a Cowboys fan. I have and will be a Saints fan, at least until they move, God forbid. That being said, I'm tired of hearing about the possibility of Terrell Owens being released. Everywhere you turn around here, somebody's talking about it. ESPN, of course. The 6'oclock news....check. Even the Ricky Smiley Morning Show....you'll hear it there too. So, we might as well figure out where Mr. Owens will end up next. Through the process of elimination, based on his mercurial (or diva-like) traits, I, Mr. Lovelace will tell you where T.O will end up next, in the event that he's cut.

First, we can eliminate Dallas, San Francisco, and Philadelphia for obvious reasons.

Our good friends at Yardbarker.com informed me that Terrell Owens has signed up as a blogger on their site and has responded to the criticisms from ESPN's Cris Carter.

As you know BlackSportsOnline broke the story of the asinine comments from Carter where he stated if he was in charge of the Cowboys the first thing he would do is cut Owens and:

"Take One Bullet & Put It Right In Him...Bam!!!"

You can read my thoughts on the comments here:

Once the story picked up steam Carter issued an immediate apology which we accepted, but it appears Owens has his own thoughts. Off topic ever since that happened ESPN has been extremely nice to us imagine that.

Go to Yardbarker.com to read what "Blogger" Owens had to say:

T.O. RESPONDS TO CRIS CARTER ON YARDBARKER.COM

Out of all the talking heads on ESPN Sunday Countdown crew the person I have the most respect for and who I believe is truly unbiased is Cris Carter, but it appears he isn't immune to the ESPN poison as he jumps on the bandwagon of blaming Terrell Owens for all that ails the Cowboys.

Here is Carter speaking on the radio about how the first thing he would do is cut Terrell Owens. He believes that will help solve all there problems. In general there wouldn't be anything out of the ordinary in this comment, but the fact that he uses a "gun" analogy in my opinion is a little over the top. Considering what is going on with Plaxico Burress, what happened to Sean Taylor and the fact that Carter is a smart guy he definitely could have used a better choice of words in describing how he felt about Owens. Lets keep the gun references out of sports talk if we can. I know what he meant by it, but it just makes everyone look bad.

I must say I am a proud of my readers and the American public as a whole. It appears finally that you are starting to see the hypocrisy of ESPN. It took a Cowboys victory and T.O. calling out Ed Werder for his faulty journalism to finally get people to understand what I have been trying to tell everyone since I opened the door to BSO back in 2005. It is not an urban legend there is a:

There are times that athletes deserve to be blasted. Lord knows T.O. over the years has said and done things that needed to be address, but here is the thing don't start something when there is nothing there. If you are going to report something you better have your ducks in a row especially if you are quoting anonymous sources.

I have no beef with Ed Werder, but it was irresponsible for him to run with a story with such little information. What Werder did was create a story out of a non-story. I am not saying it was total and complete fabrication, but he knew exactly what he was doing. He knew by running this it would cause drama and people wouldn't question its validity because it involved Terrell Owens. Just look at the reactions of the talking heads immediately following the report almost to a man they universally accepted Werder's report as fact without any checking at all. As I pointed out last night even Al Michaels repeatedly stated that it was Owens who accused Romo and Witten of making up plays instead of reporting it properly that it was "unnamed sources" who made this assumption. ESPN once again show hypocrisy by running a story with "unnamed sources" when earlier in the year they wouldn't run a story about "God" Favre because it didn't feel comfortable quoting "unnamed sources".

Thank goodness for internet bloggers like Mike Florio and others for digging deeper into the story to find the truth. Thank goodness for the NFL Network for providing an unbiased opinion on the situation.

I find it utterly ridiculous that ESPN who created this story in the first place has gone completely silent on the issue. The reason being is they know they have been caught and people are finally starting to realize that they are nothing but a "Machine" that is trying to control the "Sports Matrix".

For those of you who aren't in the media you could never know how valuable a player like Terrell Owens can be to a network. Anything involving T.O. real or fake will draw massive attention be it to a website, pregame show, NFL game or just a random 6pm Sportscenter. So don't be naïve enough to think that people in the media and specifically ESPN sometimes manufacture a story out of nothing. What T.O. did or didn't do last week is irrelevant to the point that it wasn't Owens that made this into a story. It wasn't Owens who ran to the media. All ESPN had to do was say "Owens has beef with Romo & Witten" and 97% of society just took it at face value that Owens was in the wrong.

If you listened to Al Michaels repeatedly say that Owens implied that Romo and Witten were making secrets plays without mentioning it was never Owens that said that, but "unnamed sources" made that claim without a hint of evidence to back it up shows you how easy it is to play the blame game when it comes to T.O.

There are certain players that will automatically trigger controversy no matter if it is true or not. T.O., Kobe Bryant, Alex Rodriguez, Barry Bonds, Chad Johnson, Brett Favre and Allen Iverson are a few that come to mind. All I ask of any of you is to listen closely to all of the facts and then come up with an informed opinion.

Don't be fooled, don't be manipulated by ESPN. T.O. is a convenient scapegoat for the Dallas Cowboys, but if we look a little deeper I think you will find the truth.

First off everyone knows T.O. pouts and whines. This is no different than any other Wide Receiver in the league and if you are thinking that your team best Wide Receiver doesn't do it I hate to burst your bubble yes he does. Doesn't matter if it is Hines Ward, Marvin Harrison, Ocho Cinco, Steve Smith or whoever they all want the ball. They all think they are open and they all express their frustrations when they don't get it. So T.O. isn't unique in that matter. The fact that he is T.O. is what makes it a story. Do I think T.O. thinks that Tony Romo throws too much to Jason Witten? I surely do. Do I think that T.O. thinks Tony Romo doesn't throw to him enough? I surely do. Do I think this gets on Tony Romo's nerves? I surely do. But the most important question is do I think this is what is causing problems with the Cowboys season?

This non-story was broken by Ed Werder from ESPN.com. It is common knowledge that T.O. has not been talking to Werder all year, so it wasn't a surprise that Werder went sniffing around for "Unnamed" players to get the dirt of Owens. One thing the report fails to do is talk to either Romo or Owens about how they feel about the situation. Also why are those "unnamed" players so afraid to speak on record? In almost every other ESPN story that have to do with players commenting on other players those players are named but mysteriously of all sudden no sources are needed.

What also do we make of these "unnamed" players who feel the need to spill "locker room" gossip to Werder? What do these "unnamed" players feel they are going to accomplished by throwing Owens's under the bus?

I will tell you why because they are trying to deflect blame on T.O. for their failures and it is working perfectly. T.O. isn't the problem with the Cowboys, but ESPN has pounced to make sure everyone think he is based off "unnamed" player's opinions. Be a man and if you want to call out a teammate in the media state your name.

Who is really the bad teammate? T.O. who for the most part has kept his emotions in check or the "unnamed" teammates who a gossiping like high school teenagers?

When you have a sinking ship the easiest thing to do is throw the blame on someone else. It is similar to accusing a convict of a crime not because he did it, but because he did it before so it is easier to believe.

I don't know what's funnier the fact he wore a red nose while he did this interview of the fact that reporters had a straight face when that interview took place. Regardless its nice to see the Christmas spirit. Considering that ESPN.com is reporting that there is now a rift between Owens and Tony Romo it was hard to tell from this positive upbeat interview.

There were a lot of "unnamed" Cowboys players stated that T.O, is insecure about Tony Romo's relationship with Jason Witten. Of course ESPN ran with the story without talking to Romo or T.O, so take it with a grain of salt.

I don't particular care for Brady Quinn, but at this point the Browns have no choice but to start him because Derek Anderson is not the answer.

I love parody songs. I love Weird Al Yankovic. So when Joe Wilkins of www.footballtarian.com sent this to me I had to get permission to post it. Check it out I think you will enjoy it.

This doesn't happen often but I am speechless. I mean seriously what can you say? I am truly at a lost for words. I want to tell a joke, but does anything really need to be said?

Ladies and Gentleman:

Going forward if I was Terrell Owens I would watch very carefully what I say over the next few weeks because the vultures are starting to circle. T.O. made some comments following the victory over the Packers and the ensuing loss against the Redskins that could be spun as selfish and it took the media all of 32 seconds to hope all over those comments to paint him in a negative light. The comments while misplaced were direct answers to direct questions, but when shown the way the question was asked was not shown.

Here are a few quotes from Owens made to the Associated Press about his relationship with Donovan McNabb and why he didn't think it worked out in Philly.

"I will say that Donovan made me a better receiver in Philadelphia, but I think Donovan would have a hard time admitting I made him a better quarterback," he said.

Owens also suggested their problems were the result of McNabb being insecure about Owens' popularity surpassing that of the quarterback, saying, "I remember being in that stadium and hearing them chanting my name, and that couldn't bode well for Donovan."

When asked about how it seemed Philly dominated the NFC East when he was an Eagle, much as the Cowboys are doing now, Owens suggested it was largely because he had changed teams. "The common denominator was me being in both places, but I will let you make that assessment," he said.

As someone who had contact with both T.O.'s inner circle and members of the Eagles around that time what Owens is saying it completely true. Many players on the Eagles felt that McNabb who has always been overly sensitive was jealous of the shine Owens was getting and was secretly the reason he was suspended by the Eagles in 2005. The numbers don't lie though since T.O. left the Eagles have been an average team and Dallas has been elite. When T.O. was with the Eagles they were elite and went to the Super Bowl. So who do you think was right and who do you think was wrong?

You always have to have to your popcorn ready when T.O. scores a touchdown. Another classic celebration from Mr. Owens.

Credit goes to Michael David Smith at Profootballtalk.com for bringing this story to my attention because if he hadn't it would have been buried by ESPN like all the other positive Terrell Owens stories over the years. Once again it shows that the biased mainstream media have no clues as to who are the "good guys" or "bad guys". It is stories like these that show maybe the so called "bad guys" aren't as bad as you think.

Here is the story.

A NIGHT OF UNEXPECTED HEROES AT THE ESPYS

LOS ANGELES -- It was just after 2 a.m. Thursday when I exited an ESPYS after-party somewhere in some uncharted section of downtown L.A., hailed a cab and stepped off the curb. After that, things got fuzzy.

I remember a shout, screeching tires and the glare of fast approaching headlights. I got just enough warning to leap over the hard-charging Honda Civic's front fender and into the windshield, shoulder first.

So, this is what getting hit by a car feels like.

When I came to, I was on the sidewalk, my shoulder hurting like crazy, shards of glass in my forearm and blood dripping from my fingers, while limo drivers and other witnesses screamed this way and that. The paramedics told me I was lucky to be alive ("Last time I saw a windshield like that," said one, "guy lost both his legs"), and all I could think was, "Damn! I just bought this Banana Republic tie-and-shirt ensemble!"

That, and "Holy crap, that's T.O.!"

Terrell Owens was standing over me. I'm told he was the first do-gooder on the scene of the accident. That he helped me to my feet and off the street to safe ground. That he didn't leave my side. It seems the mercurial Dallas Cowboys receiver is my hero. But my hero looks scared, and this scares me.

Media Blitz
"Wow, you all right, man?" Owens kept asking me, but in a manner that would suggest there is no possible way that I, in fact, could be all right. "Don't move. Just sit there. Breathe. Don't move."

It's now that I noticed the car's jacked windshield, which sports a hole the size of, well, my upper torso.

Yikes, I did that?

"That was crazy. Crazy," Owens confirmed. "You all right, man?

I'm fine, nothing to worry about, but Owens is so concerned, so kind, and I'm so touched by this -- we hardly know each other -- that I think my lip is quivering. There's a good chance I could break down like T.O. at that news conference. (It's just not fair. That's my receiver, man.)

T.O. showed off his new chick at the "Hancock" movie premiere. She gets the Bona Fide thumbs up from me. Of course black women across the country rolled their eyes at the sight of another black athlete with a white woman on his arm. Of course these are the same women who pledge their allegiance to Barack Obama's "Change" initiative and swear by Oprah Winfrey. How about changing your attitude about this subject? Doesn't matter if you are black, white, green, yellow or orange it is your choice who you want to date and if we are talking about making a change the change first has to come from the man/woman in the mirror.

I find it interesting if not surprising when Terrell Owens got paid by the Cowboys ESPN and other media types just acted like it didn't happen. Acted like he hasn't been a success with the Cowboys. Acted like it wasn't a big deal. ESPN.com actually lumped it in with a story about Pacman "Make It Rain" Jones. But when a story comes out about T.O. missing a drug testing call so now he is scrutinized for more drug tests it is splashed on the front page and even suggested that Owens may be on something illegal.

First off this is not an unusual occurrence. If you miss a call and you have never tested positive for anything you are subject to more testing. The NFL is suppose to keep this information confidential, but with Owens it is all about finding any information and spinning it in a negative light. Terrell Owens maybe a lot of things but two things we know are that he has never been in trouble with the law and has never tested positive for anything. On top of that anyone who knows Owens knows he treats his body like a temple, so once again this is much to do about nothing. Don't get caught up in the negative spin. This is sports not fox news.

Do you believe me now? I told you years ago that T.O. wasn't a bad guy even when the entire world (and especially Skip Bayless) said he was the worse person in professional sports. Just the thought was ludicrous considering the police blotter is always filled with professional athletes and Owens has never been in trouble with the law. I told you that Owens main problem in Philadelphia and San Francisco was trusting the media (yes I am talking to you ESPN) and saying things that everyone else was thinking. I told you that the majority of the Eagles were in T.O.'s corner not Donovan McNabb. When he went to Dallas I told you it wouldn't be a problem no matter how hard the media would try to make it out to be. They say T.O. is a team obliterator (thanks again Skip), but every team he has been on has been successful. Ironic isn't it.

So it is good to know the Jerry Jones ignores all the negative stuff and concentrates on what is important. T.O. has produced big time with the Cowboys and he deserves his contract extension and unlike the Eagles who try to be hard asses with their players (which is why they will never win a Super Bowl under Andy Reid) Jerry Jones knows how to keep his players happy. With that being said what is up with the hat Terrell (obviously a Photoshop hopefully anyway)?