What's the over under ....

drummer · Post by **drummer** » Fri Aug 18, 2006 3:52 am

Laying down the law
T.O. practices, proving Parcells is still in total control
Posted: Thursday August 17, 2006 12:40AM; Updated: Thursday August 17, 2006 7:42AM

Despite having consistently complained of hamstring pain, Terrell Owens was rumored to have run a 4.48 40-yard dash on Tuesday.
AP

If you're wondering why Terrell Owens chose Wednesday to make his sudden return to the practice field after having skipped the 14 previous sessions, the answer is rather simple: The Dallas Cowboys' mercurial receiver apparently decided he'd rather deal with a twinge in his left hamstring than with his sore head coach.

SI.com has learned that the previous afternoon, during the team's training-camp practice in Oxnard, Calif., Cowboys coach Bill Parcells approached trainer Jim Maurer and pointedly said, "Look, you tell Terrell that tomorrow I want him out here for practice. Tomorrow's the day. I don't care. Tomorrow's the day."

Apparently, Owens got the message, rejoining his teammates on the field Wednesday afternoon for the first time since Aug. 2. And, equally important, Parcells sent a message to his players that he remains firmly in charge of his team.

"Before T.O. got back out there, a lot of people were starting to second-guess Bill," one Cowboys player says. "For the first time ever, he'd shown a little weakness, like he might not be totally in control, and like he didn't know how to handle this situation. Because, let's face it, it's been a total spectacle so far."

Don't think that the "Tour de Terrell" stunt Owens pulled last week -- wearing the Discovery Channel pro cycling team's silver and blue jersey and a racing helmet while riding his stationary bike on the sideline during practice -- didn't irk Parcells, who reacted disgustedly. "As soon as he saw T.O. in the jersey, and saw all the TV cameras heading over, Parcells got up and walked to the other end of the field," says the same Cowboys player. "It's like he was saying, 'There's no way you're gonna get a shot of me in the same frame as that crap.'"

Dallas players are well aware that owner Jerry Jones was a driving force behind the courtship of Owens, who replaced reasonably popular wideout Keyshawn Johnson following the team's near-playoff 2005 campaign. They also know that Parcells absolutely loathes it when a player misses practice with a vague ailment -- and it was natural to question just how injured Owens was. Despite having consistently complained of hamstring pain, the wideout was rumored to have run a 4.48 40-yard dash on Tuesday. An MRI exam on Aug. 5, three days after he said he first injured the hamstring, reportedly came up clear.

If the surest way to rile Andy Reid, Owens' former coach in Philadelphia, was to undermine his authority and publicly embarrass his starting quarterback, the quickest way into Parcells' doghouse surely is to do exactly what Owens had been doing for the better part of two weeks.

Remember the brouhaha that occurred a decade ago when Parcells, then the Patriots' coach, referred to wideout Terry Glenn as "she"? The infamous jab came because Glenn -- now, incidentally, Dallas's other starting wideout -- had missed a series of practices with a hamstring injury.

From the other Cowboys' perspective, it was hard not to imagine that the coach had developed similar feelings about Owens. But until Parcells' ultimatum to Maurer, they weren't sure if the Tuna had the juice or gumption to take on Jones' prized free-agent signee.

"We all just sat and wondered, 'Who's gonna win this battle?'" says the Cowboys player. "As a player, you can't help but get distracted when something like that is going on. The guy comes out last every single practice, has somebody carrying his helmet and is always putting on his uniform at the last minute, and then he's out there riding the bike and drawing attention to himself. Even if he's not trying to be a deterrent -- and he clearly is -- it's obvious that the coach isn't happy.

"The bottom line is, he appeared to be healthy and wasn't practicing. So we'd sit and wonder, Who's gonna win? How's it gonna go down?'"

Give this round to the Tuna -- and stay tuned.

TO is already on schedule ...

The Assassin · Post by **The Assassin** » Fri Aug 18, 2006 3:54 am

Week 6 He'll be trashing Bledsoe.

poptart · Post by **poptart** » Fri Aug 18, 2006 4:14 am

I don't care.

DallasFanatic · Post by **DallasFanatic** » Fri Aug 18, 2006 5:06 am

geez...rack tart....let these other fools be the true idiots for the preseason.....you guys are desperate to talk about shit.

If you want to talk about something of interest, lets talk about the inability of the Queef defense to stop anything resembling a NFL offense.

Continue......

Diogenes · Post by **Diogenes** » Fri Aug 18, 2006 5:35 am

The Squaws have a defense?

Link?

M2 · Post by M2 » Fri Aug 18, 2006 5:45 am

KC Paul 3.0 wrote:
poptart wrote:I don't care.
RACK.

Yet the two tards posted...

Its too easy...

...its like posting in the CF forum.

Red · Post by **Red** » Fri Aug 18, 2006 10:01 am

The Assassin wrote:Week 6 He'll be trashing Bledsoe.

I think Bledsoe, unlike Garcia or McNabb, would have the propensity to punch Owens in the face.

Headhunter · Post by **Headhunter** » Fri Aug 18, 2006 12:05 pm

~ Yawn ~

jiminphilly · Post by **jiminphilly** » Fri Aug 18, 2006 12:49 pm

Cowboy fans you should actually be concerned about TO's hammy. It was a cronic thing in Philly and it seems like it has not gone away.

DallasFanatic · Post by **DallasFanatic** » Fri Aug 18, 2006 2:51 pm

jiminphilly wrote:Cowboy fans you should actually be concerned about TO's hammy. It was a cronic thing in Philly and it seems like it has not gone away.

Actually I don't jimbo. I could give a shit if he sees the field or not. I'll be the first to admit that if TO misses considerable playing time the Boys chances of having a decent record are thrown out the door. But for some reason that doesn't bother me this year.

Carry on.

Headhunter · Post by **Headhunter** » Fri Aug 18, 2006 3:53 pm

Having a shitty year would almost be preferable to have a great one and cheering for TO. But like I said before, as soon as that loud mouth scores a TD, I'll be a cheering hypocrit.

I know me. I've seen me do it before. (Deion, Haley...etc)

Cicero · Post by **Cicero** » Fri Aug 18, 2006 4:53 pm

I could honestly give a rat's ass. The Cowboys knew what a pice of shit they were getting. If it blows up in their face, I wont feel sorry for them.

DallasFanatic · Post by **DallasFanatic** » Fri Aug 18, 2006 4:57 pm

Cicero wrote:I could honestly give a rat's ass. The Cowboys knew what a pice of shit they were getting. If it blows up in their face, I wont feel sorry for them.

Like they'll be looking for your pity dipshit.

RockyMountainWayz · Post by **RockyMountainWayz** » Fri Aug 18, 2006 5:15 pm

Cicero wrote:I could honestly give a rat's ass. The Cowboys knew what a pice of shit they were getting. If it blows up in their face, I wont feel sorry for them.

Herd that! Jerry jones deserves to have that piece of shit of a person take his beloved boys down. He knew what he was getting into and will soon reap the rewards or pay that idiot to sit out another year paid. I see the latter happening first.

Cicero · Post by **Cicero** » Fri Aug 18, 2006 5:17 pm

DallasFanatic wrote:
Cicero wrote:I could honestly give a rat's ass. The Cowboys knew what a pice of shit they were getting. If it blows up in their face, I wont feel sorry for them.
Like they'll be looking for your pity dipshit.

Have fun

Headhunter · Post by **Headhunter** » Fri Aug 18, 2006 5:20 pm

Two things...

1) Parcells isn't going to put up with Shit. Period.

2)T.O's contract is a string of 1 year deals. If he implodes, they cut him. End of story.

Don't think Bill will let T.O. fiddle fuck around for half a year and destroy team unity. Andy Reid let that shit go on too long. Parcells won't make the same mistake.

drummer · Post by **drummer** » Fri Aug 18, 2006 5:39 pm

Headhunter wrote:Two things...

1) Parcells isn't going to put up with Shit. Period.

2)T.O's contract is a string of 1 year deals. If he implodes, they cut him. End of story.

Don't think Bill will let T.O. fiddle fuck around for half a year and destroy team unity. Andy Reid let that shit go on too long. Parcells won't make the same mistake.

This TO drama has been happening since his " injury " was diagnosed by TO's doctors . The suspicion is that TO was dogging practice , and even Jerrah had to comment on it over the weekend .

There is some fire to this smoke, and like the article says, stay tuned .

jiminphilly · Post by **jiminphilly** » Fri Aug 18, 2006 5:43 pm

Headhunter wrote: 2)T.O's contract is a string of 1 year deals. If he implodes, they cut him. End of story.

Andy Reid let that shit go on too long. Parcells won't make the same mistake.

1. It only took TO a training camp to fuck over the Eagles. He is already playing mind games with Parcells and the season hasn't even started yet.
2. You are partially correct about the contract. The guaranteed money is up front in the amount of $5m signing bonus and a $5m contract. The rest of the bonuses of the contract are roster bonuses enabling the Cowboys to cut TO after this year without any significant impact to the salary cap. (the signing bonus is prorated over the first 3 years of the contract I think for cap purposes I believe.)

The Cowboys basically mirrored what the Eagles did with the exception of making the initial bonus a signing bonus instead of a roster bonus, which the Eagles did thus preventing them any hit on the cap had Owens been released. Besides the type of bonus, the only other difference is the Cowboys gave him roughly $1m more for the first year of the contract than the Eagles did.

It was probably the easiest contract for Rosenhaus to negotiate.

Headhunter · Post by **Headhunter** » Fri Aug 18, 2006 5:48 pm

The only fire is the one lit under the sensationalists at ESPN/SI et al. Those drama queens have made a mountain of a molehill.

Dumbass · Post by **Dumbass** » Fri Aug 18, 2006 6:13 pm

Practice.....we're talking 'bout practice.