It has long been my contention that if Donovan McNabb and Terrell Owens would have stopped bickering over petty stuff in Philadelphia, both of them would be better off than they are now.
McNabb, who had always been hampered with subpar receivers, had a perfect go to guy and Owens was in an offense with a quarterback that perfectly suited his talents.
Ego more than anything else is what broke up the marriage. Â No matter what anyone tells you they are both sensitive guys, but McNabb is much better at handling the media. Â People don’t like to report this, but they had a vote to see if the team wanted to keep Owens and that vote by a wide margin went in Owens’ favor. Â In retrospect I am sure both of them wish they would have done some things differently.
Ironically, the thing that has thawed the ice between them is McNabb seeing how Eagles management treated him when they didn’t have much use for him anymore. Â I think he better understood what Owens was going through at the time he was battling with the Eagles’ organization.
Now that McNabb is a part of the Redskins and Owens is employed, McNabb is pushing for Owens to become a Redskin.
The best analogy I can use is that Owens is Bobby Brown and McNabb is New Edition. Â No matter how crazy Bobby was, the best version of New Edition was always when he was included (sorry, Johnny Gill; I’m sure Eddie Murphy can comfort you after you read that).
The Redskins, according to ESPN.com, are a little leery about bringing T.O. in but I think that at this stage of his career Owens has mellowed to the point that unless the media forces a story, he will be fine. Â All reports out of Buffalo was that even though he was surrounded by mediocore quarterbacks at best, he was a good teammate. Â In general, T.O.’s only real crime is a tendency to speak his mind a bit too freely, but considering all he has gone through I don’t think he would cause any waves.
He would be highly motivated to, first, prove he still has something in the tank, and secondly he would have a grudge not just against the Eagles, but Cowboys as well.
So hopefully we can get our popcorn ready.