T.O. suspended by the Eagles for Sundays game..

[1fan4ramsey]

As reported by 610 WIP's Howard Eskin, T.O. was suspended by the Eagles for comments he made this week regarding the team and McNabb. He is suspended for atleast the Redskins game and maybe more. Eskin has'nt ruled out that he may have played his last game as an Eagle. How do you think it will affect tomorrows game?

[Irn-Bru]

This is quite surprising news for me to hear. The Eagles have always maintained a pretty hard stance against T.O., but have let him play despite a large number of stupid comments and actions both on and off the field. I didn't think that this week would be the straw that broke the camel's back, but here we are. . .

[Hoss]

Kudos to the Eagles. As was said in an earlier thread, this guy is a cancer!

I don't think him being out for this game changes anything. We had his number last year!

[BossHog]

You can hate the Eagles, you can hate the Eagle fans... and until recently, it was perfectly okay to mock Laurie for his frugality (he ponied up for Kearse and Owens though)... but you can't knock the way Philadelphia conducts BUSINESS.

This is an UGLY situation and I think the ONLY recourse the team had was to suspend him... but that doesn't mean I actually thought they'd have the stones to do it... and on the cusp of a huge division game?

The Eagles are one of the few teams in SPORTS that don't let the players' salaries rule the way they go about things. My hat is off to them... as much as it pains me to say so.

The message is loud and clear in Philly... no one player is above anything the team stands for.

Joe is moving the Redskins in that direction, but we're not there yet as evidenced by the whole Coles fiasco.

Nice break for the Skins. As much of a horse's ass as he is off the field, T.O is their 2nd biggest weapon. Mcnabb is their biggest but he's not near as big without Owens.



Edit:

I was curious to see what the cap ramifications of the Eagles dumping T.O were and I stumbled across something that was very, very interesting...

"The Eagles structured the deal in such a way that instead of giving him a large signing bonus, they gave Owens a very large roster bonus which can not be spread out over the length of the contract or the five-year limit now in effect in the NFL," the official said. "The Eagles considered it a market-value roster bonus for a Pro Bowl receiver combined with a signing bonus made it a really generous, nice signing bonus that makes them pay (big) in the third year. It is structured in a way that they have to pay him a lot. They have him for two then they have to pay him again in the third year. He doesn’t like that now."

In 2004, the official - who has access to the actual contract - said Owens received a $6.2 million roster bonus, a $2.3 signing bonus and $660,000 in base salary for a total of $9.16 million. In 2005 he is scheduled to make a salary of $3.25 million. In 2006 Owens is scheduled to collect a $5 million roster bonus, a base salary of $770,000 and a $2.5 million option that will make the deal for that year worth $8.27 million.

Full Article Here

... that speaks volumes about the decisions they'll make. They are much, much better off to sever ties with him and be done with it before they have to pay that $5M roster bonus in 2006.

It's going to take a monumental turn in events for Owens to still be an Eagle in 2006 IMO... even if they sort this current mess out.

[elchalje]

According to WIP Sports Radio in Philly, T.O. has been suspended by Reid for at least one game, maybe more. The one game for sure is tomorrow night.

[Irn-Bru]

Transcipt of his radio show that likely 'did him in':


http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/st ... /unplugged

[JPM36]

It's on the front page of www.espn.com



Awesome news for us.

[1fan4ramsey]

He told the Eagles he was going to appologize directly to McNabb in the press conference, then never did so, that was reportedly the straw that broke the camels back.

[skins81]

You can hate the Eagles, you can hate the Eagle fans... and until recently, it was perfectly okay to mock Laurie for his frugality (he ponied up for Kearse and Owens though)... but you can't knock the way Philadelphia conducts BUSINESS.

This is an UGLY situation and I think the ONLY recourse the team had was to suspend him... but that doesn't mean I actually thought they'd have the stones to do it... and on the cusp of a huge division game?

The Eagles are one of the few teams in SPORTS that don't let the players' salaries rule the way they go about things. My hat is off to them... as much as it pains me to say so.

The message is loud and clear in Philly... no one player is above anything the team stands for.

Joe is moving the Redskins in that direction, but we're not there yet as evidenced by the whole Coles fiasco.

Nice break for the Skins. As much of a horse's ass as he is off the field, T.O is their 2nd biggest weapon. Mcnabb is their biggest but he's not near as big without Owens.



Edit:

I was curious to see what the cap ramifications of the Eagles dumping T.O were and I stumbled across something that was very, very interesting...

"The Eagles structured the deal in such a way that instead of giving him a large signing bonus, they gave Owens a very large roster bonus which can not be spread out over the length of the contract or the five-year limit now in effect in the NFL," the official said. "The Eagles considered it a market-value roster bonus for a Pro Bowl receiver combined with a signing bonus made it a really generous, nice signing bonus that makes them pay (big) in the third year. It is structured in a way that they have to pay him a lot. They have him for two then they have to pay him again in the third year. He doesn’t like that now."

In 2004, the official - who has access to the actual contract - said Owens received a $6.2 million roster bonus, a $2.3 signing bonus and $660,000 in base salary for a total of $9.16 million. In 2005 he is scheduled to make a salary of $3.25 million. In 2006 Owens is scheduled to collect a $5 million roster bonus, a base salary of $770,000 and a $2.5 million option that will make the deal for that year worth $8.27 million.

Full Article Here

... that speaks volumes about the decisions they'll make. They are much, much better off to sever ties with him and be done with it before they have to pay that $5M roster bonus in 2006.

It's going to take a monumental turn in events for Owens to still be an Eagle in 2006 IMO... even if they sort this current mess out.

I never thought he'd get the roster bonus in March after what he's done so far. The crunches in his driveway were a big joke. Comments about McNabb getting tired, now agreeing that Favre at the helm would make them undefeated.
Correct me if I'm wrong, but if he's suspended without pay (which I think they are trying to do unlike the Keyshawn situation), I think that ends up on next years cap.
They will have like 10 bazillion cap dollars to pay in 2006.
Whatever. Not having TO on the field makes them worse, maybe not in the long run, but certainly for Sunday and the upcoming weeks.

[EA7649]

i live in philly area and they reported that his appology was supposed to be longer and appologize to mcnabb and andy reed but TO onlly read 23 seconds of it

[skins81]

I said this in another thread, when Dave Spadaro on philadelphiaeagles.com comes out and starts blasting TO, you just know something is on the horizon. He is basically the mouthpiece of the Eagles PR dept

[skins81]

Spadaro just posted his commentary

[Punu]

He's out for the year! hahaha

[The Hogster]

I wanted him to play...I actually think they will be more balanced without him in the lineup.

First the Wellington thing that fired up the Gay-Ants, now this will surely fire up the E-gals.

Still think we win this one, but I actually think the Eagles will run the ball more now and I'd rather play the more 1 dimensional Eagles we came to expect.

[Deadskins]

Word Comes Down: Owens Suspended


November 5, 2005


Nov. 5, 1:30 p.m. -- Andy Reid slept on his decision. Presumably, he tossed and turned and when he awoke on Saturday morning, he decided that the best thing for the Eagles moving forward was to do so without Terrell Owens.
And, so, as the team gathered at the NovaCare Complex early in the afternoon on Saturday, they did so without Owens, who has been suspended by the team for conduct detrimenal to the team, according to the statement the Eagles issued.

Thank goodness.

Reid made the right call here, cleared the air of the putrid, me-first cloud Owens has carried since that wonderful performance in the Super Bowl. Since that time, he has been all about Terrell Owens, and having a player dominate the aura of a team as he has done is absolutely counterproductive to an effort that requires every person in the building to move in the same direction ... The Eagles will refrain from commenting further on the matter until after the game in Washington, but I will offer some of my opinions here. As you know -- if you've been reading this space since Friday morning -- Owens' comments to ESPN on Thursday night were the final straw for me.

Hey, I understand that the Eagles accept the responsibility of knowing the risk they took when they acquired Owens in 2004. Agreed. They made a deal with Owens, and he lived up to his part of the bargain last year. He was wonderful. He played great football. He was good within the organization.

Owens, last year, worked as part of the T-E-A-M.

And then, after the Super Bowl, he went into his contract snit and has since proceeded to forget about the rest of the players in the locker room, his coaches, and the staff that helped promote him and aid him in any way he needed last year.

I can tell you that I've taken it personally every time Owens has gone off with his selfish actions. He turned his back on the Eagles because he wants more money. Now he has put his future in the NFL in jeopardy because of his greed.

Did the Eagles make a mistake, looking back, when they added Owens? I won't say that. His time as an Eagle may or may not be over, but I will consider the good times of last season as a great highlight of my years here. I will also consider his petulance of this year as one of the lowlights.

Reid did what he needed to do. Does it hurt the Eagles on the field? That remains to be seen, of course. Owens is a marvelous talent, a great wide receiver. But there are other players who have talent and ability and the chance now to step up and play. Instead of Owens catching his 7 or 8 passes a game, L.J. Smith may get a few more passes. Reggie Brown will have his role expanded, something I am excited to see. Billy McMullen, in his third year as an Eagle, has a chance to prove he can play and play well at this level. Darnerien McCants will play on Sunday night. We'll learn more about him.

Now that 70 percent of the offense doesn't go through Owens, maybe the Eagles will get back to more of the essence of spreading the ball around in the West Coast offense.

I certainly think Donovan McNabb benefits from Owens' suspension. I spoke to former Eagles quarterback Ron Jaworski on Saturday after news of Owens' suspension came down and the first thing he said was that it is a good thing for McNabb.

"How can Donovan even look T.O. in the face any more, much less work with him in the offense?" said Jaworski. "Owens showed Donovan another blatent lack of respect with his comments. He's been doing it all along. You risk losing the locker room. Had it been me, I would have immediately confronted T.O. in a man-to-man manner. What he did was deal Donovan the ultimate lack of respect.

"I think the Eagles are going to be fine. From a mental standpoint, it had to happen. Otherwise, it would have again been all about T.O. Now the players know he's not around and they have to respond. I think it will bring the team together. Andy has always been able to scheme to get his players open. He'll do the same here."

Nobody knows how the team is going to react against the Redskins. This has been a tumultous period for the Eagles, a wild ride. It could be that Owens has played his last game for this team. Who knows?

I have to admit that, before news of Owens' suspension broke, I was battling the idea of Owens wearing an Eagles uniform. I can tell you -- as I confided to many friends and workers -- that I didn't want to cheer for Owens against Washington. Isn't that sad? I actually wondered how I would react if he scored a touchdown. Instead of giving fist bumps in the press box to my co-workers -- under the guise of "No celebrating in the press box, a professional edict which I break -- very quietly -- when the Eagles score -- I imagined feeling little elation had Owens scored.

Now I don't have to worry.

He's not an Eagle. When you join a team, you pledge to do whatever it takes to win the Super Bowl. You sacrifice individual accomplishments to win games.

I felt Owens did that last year. I applauded him for that. Since the Super Bowl, he didn't care about the Eagles. He cared about catches and touchdowns and his contract.

For one game, at least, the Eagles enter an NFC East game without Owens. I am elated he's not part of the team against the Redskins.

Should he come back, hey, I will trust Andy Reid and his decisions. He is the leader. He is the head coach. He is the one who took the Eagles to the Super Bowl last year and who will win a Super Bowl this season. And if Owens returns, I would expect him to be part of the team again, to work with the organization to try and win a Super Bowl. If he can't do that, he shouldn't come back.

The Eagles march on, a team again, everyone pushing together, everyone working for the common goal. I think it's a monumental challenge to overcome the last few days of headlines, but the Eagles have a better chance to do so -- this is my opinion, of course -- with the 52 players they have on the active roster right now.

http://www.philadelphiaeagles.com/news/ ... p?id=38864

[UK Skins Fan]

Message to Dan Snyder: Terrell Owens does not need to take a ride in your jet, thanks very much. Unless you're going to throw him out somewhere over the Atlantic.

[Brandon777]

This may be complete BS, but a poster on another board claimed to have inside information that if the Eagles lose tomorrow night, McNabb will have surgery and sit out the rest of the season. Then they will settle for a high draft pick for tanking the season.

[SkinsFanInHawai'i]

This may be complete BS, but a poster on another board claimed to have inside information that if the Eagles lose tomorrow night, McNabb will have surgery and sit out the rest of the season. Then they will settle for a high draft pick for tanking the season.

Maybe they want Leinart

[JPM36]

This may be complete BS, but a poster on another board claimed to have inside information that if the Eagles lose tomorrow night, McNabb will have surgery and sit out the rest of the season. Then they will settle for a high draft pick for tanking the season.

Tank the season with a 4-4 record and all 3 home division games still to come?

I find that very hard to believe.

[skinsfan#33]

This may be complete BS, but a poster on another board claimed to have inside information that if the Eagles lose tomorrow night, McNabb will have surgery and sit out the rest of the season. Then they will settle for a high draft pick for tanking the season.

Maybe they want Leinart

There are three things wrong with that:

First, the E-gals wouldn't give up on a season half way through and second, they wouldn't lose enough game to get Lienart, and third, they don't need a franchise QB.

[Redskin in Canada]

There are three things wrong with that:

Homany were those again?

You are right. I love the insight.

But I beg to differ on several other issues. I really believe that it is in the nature of Philthy fans and players to fight among themselves when things go wrong for them.

I do not feel that Andy Reid will get out of this one unharmed if they lose tomorrow and/or have a losing season. Maybe he really is fed up with Philthy. Maybe a change, and a number of team would take him in a second, would not be bad for him.

McNabb is a leader. But his ability to take them to the promised land will never be further away from reality than during this season. The bubble is about to burst in Philthy. I just love it.

[SkinsJock]

As many of you know I place a lot more importance on the team aspects of the game and firmly believe that any 1 player does not make a huge difference. Andy Reid is not a stupid coach and he will have this team competing for the division with or without TO.

They will beat us if they can run the football and if their defense has an inspired night like they had against the Chargers. Holding that team to those yards rushing gets my respect.

On the other hand I still think that when we are playing together we are the best team in the NFC East and will be in the playoffs this year.

[redskindave]

Thats great news for us

[REDEEMEDSKIN]

Ah....wonderful news. However, the Eagles are going back to spreading the ball around, and that has always spelled disaster for us in the past. We still have to bring our "A" game. This is a second week in a row that we go against a team with one of our former players. We need to be prepared.

[gus]

I think the game is gonna be harder for the Skins cause the E-gals would want to prove the world they don't need TO.

I hope all of those primadonas out there learn a lesson.