Cowboys wide receiver Patrick Crayton appeared on SportsCenter this afternoon, and, predictably, the conversation was about teammate-for-now Terrell Owens. Speculation has Dallas parting ways with T.O. this offseason, partly because he's 35 and due a $3.1 million roster bonus in June, but mostly due to the fact that nobody on the coaching staff can keep him on task. Crayton said that T.O. was a "great influence" on teammates and that the locker room chemistry was "just fine," but admitted that "I Love Me Some Me"'s relationship with the coaches was "a little rocky."
You don't say.
"A little rocky because I think sometimes when you sit down and you have man-to-man talks, I know Terrell is one of those guys who is not going to bite his tongue, and if you're not going to be straightforward with him, there's not going to be a respect there. If you're not going to shoot him straightforward when he's shooting you straightforward and being honest ...Poor choice of words, perhaps, but I take the point. But respect aside, is anybody surprised about this? I mean, hasn't T.O. been a handful wherever he's been? And unlike the end of days in San Francisco and Philadelphia, Owens has been relatively understated during his three-year Cowboys career. It's not like he's questioning the sexuality of his quarterback, or doing half-naked front-yard sit-ups as a ploy to get released.
Whatever, if the Cowboys dump Owens, the National Football Post's Mike Lombardi thinks that it could affect Jason Garrett's decision to leave the team if he's offered a head coaching gig. Which segues nicely into Crayton's take on the T.O.-Garrett relationship.
"I think [Owens] respects [Garrett] to a degree ... I'm not sure exactly. You really have to ask him how much he really respects him totally. I'm not sure if he respects him totally because of some of the comments and some of the things that happened throughout the season."On the upside, despite all that's happened, Crayton thinks Owens and Garrett could work together in the future. So basically, it sounds like the chemistry concerns aren't among the players (although Tony Romo and Jason Witten might disagree), but between the players and coaches. Jerry Jones, ladies and gentlemen!
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
1-15-2009 @ 5:01PM
Phillip said...
Let me get this straight.........you'd be willing to release a guy that, regardless of his opinions, goes out week after week and backs all his talk up, and yet NOT RELEASE THE HEAD COACH OR HIS BOYFRIEND JASONETTA GARRETT, BOTH OF WHOM CALLED THOSE PLAYS THAT GOT THE COWBOYS KILLED WHEN THEY PLAYED THE EAGLES?? GET REAL!!!
You gotta be kidding!! And don't even get me started on those other two punks, Jason Witless and Tony Homo, the two of them snug as two bugs hot for each other. Cut T.O. at your own peril, Jerry Jones. For all his mouth, people know they're going to get a good WR for their money. Then he'll turn around and stick it to you every chance he gets......
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1-15-2009 @ 7:55PM
Robbo24 said...
If Jason Garrett can't find a way to get along with the team's top receiver being an offensive coordinator who looked shaken up by the heavy hitters in the NFL then maybe he should reassess his coaching diplomacy. They both should stay and work it out. The team as a whole should come back wipe the slate clean and attack the weak areas of the game plan. Jerry should bring everybody back for a second go round. This time heavy on the accountability of each member of the team. After losing to the Eagles they should want to have a chance to avenge missed opportunities of '08.
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1-15-2009 @ 8:31PM
james said...
Yeah i agree 100%. The whole organization needs to come back with a purpose, and have some damn heart! It needs to start with Wade and Romo, Jimmy Johnson and Troy Aikman had heart and wanted to win.
1-16-2009 @ 10:36AM
black angus said...
I'm surprised that the three posters before me voiced support from TO; I do think their statements are spot-on, though. TO is simply not the problem here. Tony Romo needs a coordinator who will put the fear of God in him, who will question and hone his work ethic, who will push, push, push him until he becomes something of the legend he could be instead of the king-sized bust he looks as though he's becoming.
TO is 35, and arguably the fittest athlete in the league, but he has, what--at most, four more good years in him? Regardless of any personal animus between him and his quarterback and cornerback, if they are men, and professionals, they could, and certainly should, move past their tiffs when on the field, and utilise each other as the fearsome weapons we all know they are, while it's still possible.
Notice: TO never has any off-field drama, unless you count the accidental OD. He's not plowing into traffic cops like Moss. He's not walking off the field in the middle of the game because the tide has turned against him and his team, like Moss. He has never been quoted as saying anything remotely like, "I play how and when I feel like it," like Moss. He blocks and tackles, unlike Moss. He has a big mouth, but backs it up on game day, has heart (he didn't have to come back from that injury for the Eagles' last Super Bowl bid, but did, and was one of their few bright spots that game). Moss is a great WR, but Owens is legendary, and though that legend is fading, he's still a monster on game day, once the mic is forcibly removed from his face.
If Moss changed, or at least, the climate around him changed, so we could focus solely on his Sunday performances, it's certainly possible with TO, with whom there's far more to work.
I say: the team could do fine as is, and much deeper into the playoffs, if nobody, including TO, whined to the press every opportunity. But if you're going to get rid of anyone, look first at the coordinator, and second at the coach.
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1-17-2009 @ 6:27PM
Robert said...
Black Angus,
You and the rest on this post are the true folks willing to offer reasonable options for the team out of concern. Still though we don't have control here and Jerry has taken a few of his customary knee jerk transactions that might work or not. I strongly believe the team needs time to work things out instead of Owner Jerry micro-managing again as usual.