The Case for Keeping T.O. in Dallas

Depending on who you ask, Terrell Owens is as good as gone from the Cowboys, or Jerry Jones could keep him around, presumably because a life without drama ain't a life worth living. Or some similarly lame sentiment.

SI.com's Don Banks writes that "From all indications, the faction that has decided the Cowboys would be better off without Owens includes Stephen Jones, the owner's son and the team's COO and director of player personnel, and offensive coordinator Jason Garrett."

Of course, Garrett is the same guy Jerry paid $3 million to keep in Dallas last season -- much to the delight of Terrell Suggs and Steve Bisciotti -- so who knows if such feelings from a once-promising coordinator carries much weight with the owner.

Then again, these are the Cowboys: anything's possible. And that includes Owens returning to Valley Ranch for a fourth season. The Dallas Morning News' Tim MacMahon even goes through the trouble of listing several solid reasons why T.O.'s return is in the organization's best interest.

My favorite:

Did [T.O.] say anything about offensive coordinator Jason Garrett that was wrong? The Cowboys' offense did lack creativity this season. There were long stretches in which the coaches didn't scheme to help T.O. get free releases, allowing defenses to expose his biggest weakness (struggling vs. press coverage). Can you blame a guy who wants to be put in position to use his talent to help his team win?

No. No I can not. Neither does Jerry, I suspect. (Or, at the very least, that's the conclusion I'm drawing after Jones didn't try to keep Garrett from leaving for a head coaching gig like he did a year ago.) That doesn't mean Owens will be with the team in the coming months, which leads to another of MacMahon's points: without T.O., the Cowboys don't have a No. 1 receiver on the roster.

Roy Williams is nice -- Mike Mayock's a fan -- but unless there are plans to go after Anquan Boldin or Chad Johnson, next season could involve a lot of Tony Romo-to-Jason Witten. Depending on your perspective, that may not be a bad thing.

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

2-15-2009 @ 11:11AM

austexpilot1 said...

Am I the only one who realizes that the problem with the Cowboys is NOT T.O.? Just askin'...

2-19-2009 @ 12:51PM

Robert said...

Nope, you're not. Let's just hope that Jerry Jones and the team take the steps towards getting to who really does need to go, and keep bringing effective personnel in.

P.S. I made a mistake earlier in replying to austexpilot1. So excuse my redundant remarks. Just have to pay more attention to how things are set up before I click add comment button.

2-15-2009 @ 5:20PM

Jaime Cadena said...

I beleive T.O. isn't the problem. Arrogance is confidence, and Michael Irvin had a boat load of it. Garretts lame attempt at a high powered offence, hampered T.O. We need a GM so bad it's not funny. JJ is turning the Cowboys inot the Raiders, all hype. The new stadium will be filled with soccer fans and such. Because Jerry doesn't get it that the new generation of fans don't follow legends, the go with winners. Look around your city, where cowboy stickers dominated before, now it's every team that's won in the last decade. I'm willing to bet they've never been to their teams stadium, ever.

2-16-2009 @ 9:43AM

greg said...

TO is poison, and has been for every team he has played on. What is it that you guys dont get?

2-16-2009 @ 11:22AM

T.O. wants to win! What is it with everyone else? Look at the team as a whole. Where do you see inspiration? Only T.O. has the desire to get touchdowns. But if he raises his voice to anyone, he's a trouble maker. I remember when Michael Irvin would get in peoples faces to fire them up, no one said a damn thing.

2-18-2009 @ 12:05PM

Patches said...

Owens is a club house cancer. If he would just catch more balls, and keep his mouth shut, both he and Cowboys would be better off. If JJ wants a championship team again DFW fan base, he would do well to watch, and learn why the Steelers are so dominant year in and year out. Just a team full of solid football players who kill and eat premadonna trouble makers if they show up in their locker rooms. Pretty decent coaching staff too.....Patch

2-18-2009 @ 6:29PM

TO draws way too much attention from the main stream mediots. TO's work ethics would put most ball players to shame. He has a home in Dallas, and I for one support him as much as the team as a whole. Cowboys 4ever

2-19-2009 @ 12:35PM

Owens does his job on the field despite the harsh comments thrown his way. This focus in team chemistry is important, but breaking up the team after a disappointing season may not be the answer.

All I can say is I hope the people in charge (JJ) wake up and shore up the weak points, o-line, d-backfield, bringing that part of the team up to par before you having this talk of getting rid of top performers.

Let's go Silver and Blue.

2-19-2009 @ 12:40PM

Nope, you're not. Let's just hope that Jerry Jones and the team take the steps towards getting to who really does need to go, and keep bringing effective personnel in.

2-19-2009 @ 12:42PM

This response was for austexpilot1.