Typical T.O. at Cowboys debut
by Sportsnet.ca
OXNARD, Calif. (AP) -- An hour north of Hollywood, Terrell Owens did his best Saturday to force a dramatic debut to his first training camp with the Dallas Cowboys.
He started out by being fashionably late, making sure he was the last one out of the locker room. Once he finally headed out to the practice field, his face carried an all-business look better suited for a playoff game.
Two hours later, with a mundane session coming to a close, Owens gave the fans what they came to see. Using his size and speed, he ran past cornerback Aaron Glenn, snatched a long pass and raced into the end zone, throwing the ball down in celebration.
A chant of "T.O." started immediately and grew louder at the urging of another newcomer, kicker and Oakville, Ont., native Mike Vanderjagt. Then Owens made his way back to midfield waving his arms to keep the cheer going.
If there was still any doubt whether Cowboys fans would embrace Owens, it ended right there. As long as he catches passes and scores touchdowns, they'll love him as much as anyone who has ever worn a star on his helmet -- regardless of what he once did to the star logo on their home field.
"They're excited for me to be here and I'm equally excited for me to be here," Owens said. "I got it every day in Philadelphia, fans chanting my name each and every day, so I expect that."
Problem is, many people are expecting a lot of other things that happened in Philadelphia, such as the confrontations with teammates and coaches that led to an ugly departure. Bracing for them might a better way of describing it.
But Owens, his new teammates and coach Bill Parcells all insist he comes to Dallas with a clean slate. Sure, they know the baggage he carries -- "You'd have to be living in a closet to not know some of the things," Parcells said -- but they're vowing to judge him only on what they see.
And so far, they like what they've seen.
"He's so physical, so fast," raved quarterback Drew Bledsoe, whose relationship with Owens will be scrutinized as much as Owens-Parcells. "The thing that's probably most impressive is what he does after he catches the ball. He turns up the field like he's trying to score every time he touches it. That's paid off huge for him. He's led the league in yardage after catch, and hopefully that will be the case this year."
It might be too early to start talking about statistical goals since it remains to be seen how Parcells will use Owens. It has often been said that he shouldn't expect to catch 100 passes, but the truth is he's only hit that mark once in his career.
Owens said his only statistical goals are to have "a lot" of receptions and touchdowns. He later said fantasy football team owners should pick him because "if you want touchdowns, if you want somebody to be up there at the top of the leaderboard, then I guess I'm your man."
He seemed to be going for a laugh with those lines. With a more serious tone, he talked about wanting to fit in.
"Bill kind of strives on that running game. I'm behind that 100 per cent," he said. "We're going to feed off each other. Some games, the running game is going to be where it needs to be and sometimes the passing is not. And sometimes it's going to be vice-a-versa."
Owens had a brief chat with Parcells, then another with Bledsoe during the first workout. Everyone was full of smiles.
Asked about the conversation with Parcells, Owens said the coach told him, "We're going to have some fun."
Owens knows he's not going to always have such pleasant exchanges with his new coach. That seems to be OK with him.
"I know Bill's the kind of guy that's going to test guys, so to speak," Owens said. "I'm kind of like a couple steps ahead of him in that department. If he gets onto me, I know it's for the good of the team. So I welcome that. ... As long as I'm doing my job, we'll have no problems."
None?
"Not at all," he said. "I think everybody's speculating, they're kind of waiting for that to happen. So you guys keep waiting."
Parcells insists he's not thinking about when or if Owens will have another tantrum.
"We're going to treat him with respect and see what happens," Parcells said. "Coach him. Correct him. Try to put him in positions to make plays. OK? Make him part of the team. Make him part of the offence. That's what we're going to try to do. ... If it works, it works. If it doesn't work, it doesn't work."
OXNARD, Calif. (AP) -- An hour north of Hollywood, Terrell Owens did his best Saturday to force a dramatic debut to his first training camp with the Dallas Cowboys.
He started out by being fashionably late, making sure he was the last one out of the locker room. Once he finally headed out to the practice field, his face carried an all-business look better suited for a playoff game.
Two hours later, with a mundane session coming to a close, Owens gave the fans what they came to see. Using his size and speed, he ran past cornerback Aaron Glenn, snatched a long pass and raced into the end zone, throwing the ball down in celebration.
A chant of "T.O." started immediately and grew louder at the urging of another newcomer, kicker and Oakville, Ont., native Mike Vanderjagt. Then Owens made his way back to midfield waving his arms to keep the cheer going.
If there was still any doubt whether Cowboys fans would embrace Owens, it ended right there. As long as he catches passes and scores touchdowns, they'll love him as much as anyone who has ever worn a star on his helmet -- regardless of what he once did to the star logo on their home field.
"They're excited for me to be here and I'm equally excited for me to be here," Owens said. "I got it every day in Philadelphia, fans chanting my name each and every day, so I expect that."
Problem is, many people are expecting a lot of other things that happened in Philadelphia, such as the confrontations with teammates and coaches that led to an ugly departure. Bracing for them might a better way of describing it.
But Owens, his new teammates and coach Bill Parcells all insist he comes to Dallas with a clean slate. Sure, they know the baggage he carries -- "You'd have to be living in a closet to not know some of the things," Parcells said -- but they're vowing to judge him only on what they see.
And so far, they like what they've seen.
"He's so physical, so fast," raved quarterback Drew Bledsoe, whose relationship with Owens will be scrutinized as much as Owens-Parcells. "The thing that's probably most impressive is what he does after he catches the ball. He turns up the field like he's trying to score every time he touches it. That's paid off huge for him. He's led the league in yardage after catch, and hopefully that will be the case this year."
It might be too early to start talking about statistical goals since it remains to be seen how Parcells will use Owens. It has often been said that he shouldn't expect to catch 100 passes, but the truth is he's only hit that mark once in his career.
Owens said his only statistical goals are to have "a lot" of receptions and touchdowns. He later said fantasy football team owners should pick him because "if you want touchdowns, if you want somebody to be up there at the top of the leaderboard, then I guess I'm your man."
He seemed to be going for a laugh with those lines. With a more serious tone, he talked about wanting to fit in.
"Bill kind of strives on that running game. I'm behind that 100 per cent," he said. "We're going to feed off each other. Some games, the running game is going to be where it needs to be and sometimes the passing is not. And sometimes it's going to be vice-a-versa."
Owens had a brief chat with Parcells, then another with Bledsoe during the first workout. Everyone was full of smiles.
Asked about the conversation with Parcells, Owens said the coach told him, "We're going to have some fun."
Owens knows he's not going to always have such pleasant exchanges with his new coach. That seems to be OK with him.
"I know Bill's the kind of guy that's going to test guys, so to speak," Owens said. "I'm kind of like a couple steps ahead of him in that department. If he gets onto me, I know it's for the good of the team. So I welcome that. ... As long as I'm doing my job, we'll have no problems."
None?
"Not at all," he said. "I think everybody's speculating, they're kind of waiting for that to happen. So you guys keep waiting."
Parcells insists he's not thinking about when or if Owens will have another tantrum.
"We're going to treat him with respect and see what happens," Parcells said. "Coach him. Correct him. Try to put him in positions to make plays. OK? Make him part of the team. Make him part of the offence. That's what we're going to try to do. ... If it works, it works. If it doesn't work, it doesn't work."
posted by The Gryphon at 11:00 PM
<< Home