Posts Tagged ‘Terrell Owens’

Michael Vick: Fallen Falcon to Eager Eagle

Friday, August 14th, 2009

Michael Vick_Philadelphia Eagles_NFLIt finally is here!  The day that the villanous dog killer Michael Vick rejoins the NFL, this time as a Philadelphia Eagle. 

     Wow!  I do not envy Michael Vick one bit.  Granted the Eagles run the West Coast Offense and that Andy Reid is an innovative offensive mind, but Philadephia???  Philly fans are tough and have a reputation of being hard on players, but I don’t think the Eagles Management envisioned the fury that started bubbling last night when the team made the announcement about the Vick signing.  The preseason game with the Patriots was forgotten (though the Eagles made a nice comeback in a 27-25 loss) and the Vick arguments began. 

     Even the talking heads don’t agree…  Steve Young thought the signing was a great move while former Eagle great Ron Jaworski thought the pressure may be too much for Vick and good friend Donovan McNabb who supposedly was consulted and signed off on the Vick deal.      

     The members of the Eagles brass have a great reputation, but I don’t agree with the assessment that they are a stable organization that can handle any crises the Vick signing will bring. The organization was well on their way to potentially firing Andy Reid and dumping McNabb after embarassing games last year against the Bengals and Ravens.  And McNabb was worried about Kevin Kolb looking over his shoulder, let alone Michael Vick who has led a team into the playoffs and NFC Championship Game.  Couple that with the loss of Jim Johnson and Brian Dawkins and the aftershocks of the Terrell Owen debacle a couple of years back and the Philadelphia Eagles organization may be mixing an explosive brew.

     As I stated a couple of weeks back, people need to move forward and let Michael Vick try to rebuild his life.  His actions were reprehensible and heinous and should not be overlooked, but he should get the chance to show he is willing to make amends and be a positive influence on the football field and off.  We’ll see if Philly’s the right place for him to start that journey.

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Tony, do your talking on the field…

Wednesday, May 27th, 2009

tonyromo_dallascowboys_nfl1The Dallas Cowboys are now Tony Romo’s team.  Yes, they have been his team since he signed up as an undrafted free agent years ago, but now the crosshairs are squarely on Number 9.  The report on the Terrell Owens Twitter over the weekend has made the City of Dallas atwitter over the “revelation” that it was ”the OC and Romo” that ran him out of town.  This is the first season that Romo will not have Owens to throw to, and for Dallas to succeed, he and Garrett better be correct that they are better off without TO.

     Last season, ten of Romo’s 26 TD passes were to Owens and over the last three years, there has not been a more prolific QB-WR touchdown tandem.  Wide receiver Roy Williams only caught 16 passes from Romo last year, none for touchdowns, so he has some big shoes to fill in Big D.   The offense is going to be under critical review this year with TO gone, three losses in the last four games last season and a serious drop in statistical rankings.  Add to that, a growing sense of dissatisfaction among the fan base that Romo has the focus and maturity to lead the Cowboys and 2009 becomes a reality check year for Tony Romo.

     When one speaks of the quarterback with the boyish charm, rocket arm and diva girlfriend, are they speaking about Tony Romo or Tom Brady?  Add the “and three Superbowl Rings” and the difference is very distinctive.  Sure Brady does many of the same things that Romo does, the difference is, it’s not during the football season and it’s built on a platform of being arguably the best quarterback of all time. 

     Tony, you don’t have the stats or pedigree that Brady has; until you do leave Jessica Simpson at home and do your talking on the field.  2009 is your year to show everyone what Tony Romo is made of…

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It’s all about Talent…

Wednesday, May 20th, 2009

owens-terrell-buffaloDo Dallas Cowboy fans see anything wrong with the picture to the right?  Yes sir, that is Terrell Owens, the Cowboys top receiver the last three years (actually the last 10 years going back to Michael Irvin) with a BUFFALO BILLS backdrop behind him.  I have been catching the talking heads giving their predictions for the 2009 football season and every one I heard expects the Cowboys to do better this year.  Why?  Well it’s addition by subtraction of course… Huh?!? 

     If I hear one more time how much better off the Cowboys are this year, I’ll go nuts!  Subtract TO; hmmm that’s over 1000 yards and 10 touchdowns out of the offense.  Subtract Pac-Man Jones; hmmm, that’s knocking out the best cover corner the Boys had last year.  Subtract Roy Williams the safety; hmmm, awesome hitter and intimidator in the secondary.  Are any of those guys perfect players or model citizens?  No way, but tell me, where is the addition part?  All three are great talents and add to a football team!

     It is all about talent and how you manage it in the NFL.  If Wade is not tough enough to get the players in line, can him.  If Jason Garrett can’t manage the offense, replace him.  Not the players!  Get more leadership for the locker room!  Ray Lewis and Brian Dawkins were both on the market this year.  Yes, they had high price tags, but the object is to win the Superbowl and both could have helped there.  Jimmy Johnson valued talent and could manage it.  When did the Cowboys get over the top in the 90’s?  When they brought in super “malcontent” Charles Haley to rush the passer.  How did the Patriots get to 16-0 last year?  By bringing in Randy Moss and turning him loose.  Haley and Moss did not suddenly become angels did they?  No, they were managed by veteran leaders and strong coaches.

     The Cowboys will not be better this year without TO.  The record may get better due to a softer schedule.  The new stadium will be great as will the national TV exposure.  But the playoff and Superbowl drought will continue until Jerry Jones goes back to the formula that made the Team of the 90’s, strong coaching and stronger players.

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Broncos Win….Bears Lose

Friday, April 3rd, 2009

Jay Culter - NFL PlayerTwo weeks ago, we called Jay Cutler petulant because of the immature way he was handling his riff with his employer, the Denver Broncos.  Yesterday, Cutler was traded by the Broncos to the Chicago Bears for two 1st round draft choices and QB Kyle Orton.  Good riddance by the Broncos and break out the life vest in Chicago because that ship is sinking.

Shame on the Broncos for giving in to the petulant behavior but what they received in return is a very good start to an already difficult rebuilding program.  Sure, The Bears receive what many call a franchise quarterback but what they have really received is another Terrell Owens.  Culter, like Owens is smart, has talent and works hard at his craft but he is immature and that will eventually lead to his down fall in the windy city and in the league.

Franchise quarterbacks are hard to come by in the NFL so what makes the likes of Manning, Brady, McNabb and Roethlisberger even more valuable is their maturity level coupled with their impeccable skills.  You must be mature in order to lead people as good people do not follow a rudderless ship such as Cutler.  Cutler did well under Mike Shanahan who is one of the premier offensive teachers and minds in the league but Chicago is a defense first team with Lovie Smith coming up through the defensive ranks of the league.   Chicago was unable to develop Rex Grossman because they had neither the mind set nor skill set to do so.  Quarterbacks with raw talent have to be taught how to play the game such as Troy Aikman and McNabb were.  Those who never panned out in the league like David Carr and Tim Couch had very poor coaching and therefore never had great success.

I can not say the Bears will not have some success with Cutler at the helm but I think the longer term solution at quarterback for the Chicago Bears just took a few steps backwards.

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Who shot TO?

Friday, March 6th, 2009

t_owens_090305_250x150The question in Dallas in the 80’s was who shot JR; the question for 2009, who shot TO???  While I can’t pipe in the theme music from the late, great primetime soap Dallas, the current goings on in Big D smack of that old drama… Jerry says he loves TO, Romo says he needs TO, Garrett says he wants TO and now TO’s gone.  Let’s look at the cast of suspects…

Jerry Jones

The leader of the pack, Jerry was saying two weeks ago that TO was likely back, now he says the Cowboys need a new attitude.  What was wrong with the old one, at least where TO was concerned?  TO was a workaholic and passionate player who brought it all every Sunday.  A great owner and lousy GM, Jones dished out 4 years and over 30 mil to TO last year on a new contract and this move costs the Boys 9 million in dead money.  Way to go Jerry!  Had Jones laid down the law with Owens early on in the Parcells days, maybe this doesn’t happen.  Better yet, had Jones hired a non-creampuff coach, maybe TO would have been more accountable, which brings us to…

Wade Phillips

TO loved Wade compared to Bill Parcells; why wouldn’t he, he got to do whatever he wanted.  Nuf said on the creampuff who should have been the move Jerry made…

Jason Garrett

Jason’s fingerprints are all over this as he said that he felt he and TO could not co-exist after TO questioned his offensive schemes.  How dare TO do that???  Question, didn’t Dallas’ offense drop from the top 5 to the 2nd tier last year?  And where did all the crossing patterns and motion plays for TO that were a big success in 2007, go in 2008?  Maybe Garrett should have done more analysis of his offense and done more to get more out of Tony Romo in practices…

Tony Romo

Everybody’s favorite playboy remains the QB of the future in Dallas and the best guy to be driving the car since Troy Aikman.  The difference between him and Aikman is, could you really have seen TO chewing on Aikman like he did on Romo?  Aikman had his own diva Wide Receiver to deal with in Michael Irvin and oh by the way, they’re both in the Hall of Fame and have three Superbowl Rings.  For Romo and Dallas to be successful, he needs to take the reins and leadership role on the offense which has not happened thus far…

Jason Witten

The mysterious “source” for many of Ed Werder’s TO reports, Witten lost Owen’s trust and facilitated this whole debacle.  Another player who needs to show more leadership as the Cowboys trudge on.

Terrell Owens

Was this killing self inflicted???  Obviously to some extent as Owens is a diva and lightning rod for the media.  He could have played nicer on the sidelines, but it is not in his fiery and competitive nature…

So, where are we now?  As a staunch Cowboy fan, I can not be more disappointed that the team parted ways with TO.  How do you replace 38 TDs and over 4000 yards in receiving over the last three years???  This guy is a Hall of Famer for cat’s sake!  The issue with TO has always been accountability.  As in Philadelphia before and now in Dallas, Owens is not afraid to say what is on his and other players minds.  This is not necessarily a bad thing if handled in the right way.  I’ve had plenty of employees who told me things I did not like to hear, if I had fired them all, I’d be in a pretty sparce work environment.  Jerry Jones, Wade Phillips and Jason Garrett entitled TO, Romo and Witten did not man up to confront the issues before them with Owens and TO got the shaft.  A pretty sad ending to the soap opera if you ask me…

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