T.O. in Redskins' Uniform???
Posted: Mon Jan 16, 2006 1:26 pm
Owens Would Look Good in a Redskins Uniform
By Leonard Shapiro
Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, November 26, 2005; 12:56 AM
Billy Kilmer, the old furnace-faced quarterback of the 1970s Redskins, showed up in Tampa a couple of weeks ago to watch his old team lose a heartbreaker to the Buccaneers.
Sitting in the media lounge before the game started, Kilmer also offered up an old football warrior's solution to the Terrell Owens situation in Philadelphia.
If Owens had made statements about him similar to the ones he made about Donovan McNabb, Kilmer said he would simply have taken matters into his own passing hand.
"I'd send him over the middle," Kilmer said, with a sly smile on his face. "Then I'd lob one up and make him stretch out for it. Oh yeah, I'd probably tell the safety where I was gonna' throw the ball, too. I guarantee you, that would have been the last time T.O. lipped off about me."
Maybe we have seen the end of Owens obstructive tactics, absurd touchdown celebrations and apologetic press conferences, the last of which was staged outside his suburban New Jersey home with pathetic agent Drew Rosenhaus and seemed more Comedy Central than contrite mea culpa.
There also is no doubt that Owens will play football again, though hardly at the price he and his agent had in mind when they clearly orchestrated his disruptive behavior starting back in training camp in order to get the Eagles to renegotiate what had been a sweet seven-year, $49 million deal to begin with.
Make no mistake, Owens is still a major offensive force who drives defensive coordinators and cornerbacks -- not to mention his own coaches and teammates -- totally batty. But if he plays for anything more than a modest signing bonus and an NFL minimum veteran's contract next year, I'd be very surprised.
But I also would not be the least bit shocked, either, if the Washington Redskins were one of the teams that tries to go after him in the offseason, once the Eagles release him rather than pay a $5 million roster bonus that comes due in March.
Joe Gibbs and Terrell Owens in the same area code, you ask. Why not?
Despite his squeaky clean image and his deeply held religious beliefs, Gibbs mostly likes to win. He's also had a long history of putting up with disruptive players marching to the beat of their own drummer, going back to the days of Dexter Manley, Gary Clark and even John Riggins.
Wasn't it Gibbs' NASCAR racing team that also has been paying bad-boy driver Tony Stewart big money for so many years? As long as Stewart kept winning championships, Gibbs Racing was willing to deal with all manners of off-track transgressions and petulant behavior.
You think the Redskins' passing game would be struggling now with Owens in the lineup? You think Santana Moss might see less double and even triple coverage than he's been getting over the last four games with teams paying virtually no attention at all to lesser lights like David Patten, James Thrash or Taylor Jacobs?
(Not to get sidetracked here, but the Redskins biggest offseason blunder was not going after a big-bodied receiver in the college draft or free agency, and heaven knows they had plenty of chances to avoid an all-Smurf receiving corps. With USC's Mike Williams still on the board, the Redskins instead chose Auburn cornerback Carlos Rogers with the ninth selection overall. Rogers, who still has potential, nevertheless has been making countless rookie mistakes all season and still can't crack a starting lineup that includes cornerback Walt Harris, who can't seem to cover or tackle on a consistent basis. But we digress).
Owens would seem to be Daniel Snyder's kind of guy, at least in Snyder's early incarnation as an impulsive owner more than happy to throw big bucks to a wide variety of over-the-hill, nonproductive former All Pro players to come and feed at the Redskins trough. But Owens is one player who might actually be a difference maker on a team desperate to throw the ball, if only Snyder can convince Gibbs he'd be worth the risk.
You'd also like to think that Owens's forced trip to the sidelines for a good portion of the current season might make a difference in his own life.
He'll be 32 next year and there aren't all that many seasons left for a player who also has been somewhat injury prone over the last few years.
Perhaps after this latest setback and reality check, he'll finally be prepared to simply play the game, no shenanigans included.
There are other places where Owens might fit in nicely. Dallas owner Jerry Jones was quoted the other day as saying he hasn't ruled out taking a chance on Owens when and if he becomes a free agent. His coach, Bill Parcells, also has a track record of dealing with egomanaical superstars -- Lawrence Taylor and Keyshawn Johnson come immediately to mind -- and Owens would be a sweet target for bazooka-armed quarterback Drew Bledsoe.
And how about the Green Bay Packers? Do you think Brett Favre might be convinced to come back for one more year after the disaster of 2005 knowing that Owens would be at the other end of many of his throws? Having Owens exiled to Green Bay, the NFL's smallest and coldest outpost, would also be the league's version of sweet revenge.
And if Owens ever gave Favre any lip, there's always the Billy Kilmer solution, virtually guaranteeing it would stay buttoned in perpetuity.
By Leonard Shapiro
Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, November 26, 2005; 12:56 AM
Billy Kilmer, the old furnace-faced quarterback of the 1970s Redskins, showed up in Tampa a couple of weeks ago to watch his old team lose a heartbreaker to the Buccaneers.
Sitting in the media lounge before the game started, Kilmer also offered up an old football warrior's solution to the Terrell Owens situation in Philadelphia.
If Owens had made statements about him similar to the ones he made about Donovan McNabb, Kilmer said he would simply have taken matters into his own passing hand.
"I'd send him over the middle," Kilmer said, with a sly smile on his face. "Then I'd lob one up and make him stretch out for it. Oh yeah, I'd probably tell the safety where I was gonna' throw the ball, too. I guarantee you, that would have been the last time T.O. lipped off about me."
Maybe we have seen the end of Owens obstructive tactics, absurd touchdown celebrations and apologetic press conferences, the last of which was staged outside his suburban New Jersey home with pathetic agent Drew Rosenhaus and seemed more Comedy Central than contrite mea culpa.
There also is no doubt that Owens will play football again, though hardly at the price he and his agent had in mind when they clearly orchestrated his disruptive behavior starting back in training camp in order to get the Eagles to renegotiate what had been a sweet seven-year, $49 million deal to begin with.
Make no mistake, Owens is still a major offensive force who drives defensive coordinators and cornerbacks -- not to mention his own coaches and teammates -- totally batty. But if he plays for anything more than a modest signing bonus and an NFL minimum veteran's contract next year, I'd be very surprised.
But I also would not be the least bit shocked, either, if the Washington Redskins were one of the teams that tries to go after him in the offseason, once the Eagles release him rather than pay a $5 million roster bonus that comes due in March.
Joe Gibbs and Terrell Owens in the same area code, you ask. Why not?
Despite his squeaky clean image and his deeply held religious beliefs, Gibbs mostly likes to win. He's also had a long history of putting up with disruptive players marching to the beat of their own drummer, going back to the days of Dexter Manley, Gary Clark and even John Riggins.
Wasn't it Gibbs' NASCAR racing team that also has been paying bad-boy driver Tony Stewart big money for so many years? As long as Stewart kept winning championships, Gibbs Racing was willing to deal with all manners of off-track transgressions and petulant behavior.
You think the Redskins' passing game would be struggling now with Owens in the lineup? You think Santana Moss might see less double and even triple coverage than he's been getting over the last four games with teams paying virtually no attention at all to lesser lights like David Patten, James Thrash or Taylor Jacobs?
(Not to get sidetracked here, but the Redskins biggest offseason blunder was not going after a big-bodied receiver in the college draft or free agency, and heaven knows they had plenty of chances to avoid an all-Smurf receiving corps. With USC's Mike Williams still on the board, the Redskins instead chose Auburn cornerback Carlos Rogers with the ninth selection overall. Rogers, who still has potential, nevertheless has been making countless rookie mistakes all season and still can't crack a starting lineup that includes cornerback Walt Harris, who can't seem to cover or tackle on a consistent basis. But we digress).
Owens would seem to be Daniel Snyder's kind of guy, at least in Snyder's early incarnation as an impulsive owner more than happy to throw big bucks to a wide variety of over-the-hill, nonproductive former All Pro players to come and feed at the Redskins trough. But Owens is one player who might actually be a difference maker on a team desperate to throw the ball, if only Snyder can convince Gibbs he'd be worth the risk.
You'd also like to think that Owens's forced trip to the sidelines for a good portion of the current season might make a difference in his own life.
He'll be 32 next year and there aren't all that many seasons left for a player who also has been somewhat injury prone over the last few years.
Perhaps after this latest setback and reality check, he'll finally be prepared to simply play the game, no shenanigans included.
There are other places where Owens might fit in nicely. Dallas owner Jerry Jones was quoted the other day as saying he hasn't ruled out taking a chance on Owens when and if he becomes a free agent. His coach, Bill Parcells, also has a track record of dealing with egomanaical superstars -- Lawrence Taylor and Keyshawn Johnson come immediately to mind -- and Owens would be a sweet target for bazooka-armed quarterback Drew Bledsoe.
And how about the Green Bay Packers? Do you think Brett Favre might be convinced to come back for one more year after the disaster of 2005 knowing that Owens would be at the other end of many of his throws? Having Owens exiled to Green Bay, the NFL's smallest and coldest outpost, would also be the league's version of sweet revenge.
And if Owens ever gave Favre any lip, there's always the Billy Kilmer solution, virtually guaranteeing it would stay buttoned in perpetuity.
