TO gets support from his team

[Spiderweb]

This thread is abolutely pitiful. That anyone can defend TO at this point is indicative of what's gone wrong with our country. To begin, there's comparisons of apples to oranges, selective memories, and a bit of revisionist history being thrust upon us here.

 

There's comment that somehow McNabb showed TO disrespect by not jumping up and down and doing cartwheels when it became apparent that TO would probably play in the SB? What did you expect? McNabb, none the less, gave him the ultimate in respect by putting his feelings aside and by thowing TO the ball a good number of times, if I recall correctly. This meant the team and winning came first, just as it should be.

 

May I ask, what did TO do in return when the game was over? Nevermind, we all know what he did. He began blasting McNabb publicly every chance he got and to anyone who would listen. TO then decided that last year's signing bonus he got from the Eagles was so nice, he wanted another. Renegotiating a contract, one year after signing and darned good contract, is way out of line. The Eagles basically said no, which was just and proper.

 

TO responds by amplifying his attack against McNabb, and then extends it to a coach and earns, repeat, earns time off for his outburst. Yet, when he came back and the season began, there was McNabb again throwing him the ball, frequently, placing the team and winning above his personal feelings for TO again, just as it should be. Throughout this whole ordeal, McNabb has shown amazing restraint in his comments towards TO, who on the other hand has shown none.

 

The demons inside TO still couldn't let it go. He then throws a tantrum because the Eagles disrespected him by not showering him with honors for his 100th TD. Big surprise there TO as you've done just about everything one could do to get the Eagles to wish you away. Still not finished, he decides to pick a fight with Hugh Douglas, and offers himself to anyones else that thinks they might want a piece of him. So TO, already on notice by the team previously, is suspended, which was just and overdue. TO's only enemy is himself, no one else. He made his bed, now lie in it.

 

To compare this, even loosely, to the bickering Bills of 1989 is an extreme reach and borders upon absurdity. Kelly, Reed, and Thomas didn't go after any coaches as did TO, none of them blasted the Bills organization for a lack of recognition for personal honors, none of them got into a locker room fight and then asked if anyone else there wanted a piece of him, etc., etc., etc.

 

I'm no McNabb fan. To me, he's a great athlete who's playing 15-20 lbs heavier than he should be, and a QB who's not the most accurate passer. Yet, he is a competitor, a team player, and someone who showed remarkable restraint in his statements to or about TO. I wonder how many here could have done the same.

[Buftex]

He wasn't saying that every athlete needs to be as talented as Jordan. He's saying that, like Jordan, every athlete should put winning first.

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Yeah, just ask Doug Collins and Horace Grant!

[Buftex]

Agreed on that point, but McNabb made those comments in response to questions on whether or not he was excited that TO would suit up.  Most franchise QBs would say that they are excited and that TO will provide a boost.  Instead, Donovan trivialized TO's return and basically implied that he wasn't needed.

 

 

 

Wow, I am almost never in agreement with Silver N Red on anything, but you are really deluding the facts in this case...when ESPN was on 24-7 Terrell Owes watch, they did a complete recap of how the situation between McNabb and Owns evolved (or devolved if you prefer..) During SB media week last, leading up to this years Super Bowl, McNabb and all of his teammates were barraged with questions like "Can you guys win this game without Terrell Owens?" To a man, all, prefaced their comments by saying something to the effect of "Well, we are obviously a better team with him in there, but as it stands right now, he may not be. We have won games without him in the past, and we think we can do it again..." Nobody was "minimizing" poor TO! They were just asking the media not to minimize the other 52 men on the roster...

 

Ever since then, McNabb made no public criticism of Owens. He was obviously pissed off by Owens continued criticism of him to the media, so like a leader, he called a players meeting to clear the air...McNabb has always attempted to keep the situation "in house" like a team leader should. Any negative statements he may have made about Owens, were not made to members of the media, but were part of heresay stories put out by the media...

 

Anyone who continues to defend this idiot, is not seeing the truth, that this whole situation has always been about Terrell Owens getting paid...I have never heard anybody (fans, players, Eagles mgmt) suggest that Owens was not a great talent. Everyone, including TO, was in awe of Owens after his great Super Bowl performance. But, it wasn't 48 hours after the game was over, that Owens take on the Super Bowl was not "crap, we lost the Super Bowl, we have to get that much better to win one next year", but instead was "I risked my career for this team and played my ass off, where is my reward? I wasn't the one dragging my ass in the fourth quarter, that was McNabb..."

 

It all came back to that Super Bowl performace for Owens. He so desperately wanted to recognized (and paid) for that performance, that he was willing to throw his teammate (and QB) under the bus. You could almost here him say "I played great when I was hurt, but the team isn't doing so great when McNabb plays hurt" What he fails to recognize is that the Eagles did not win a Super Bowl, despite his tremendous effort...

 

The guy has always been about himself...that is a crime in a team sport...I know his name doesn't show up on the police blotters. Guys have done far worse off the field, and received far less punishment. All of that, while true, is irrelevant, and besides the point.

 

The bottom line is, the guy is a great player, but a bad teammate, and a spoiled child who desperately needs a "time-out". Andy Reid and Eagles Mgmt. are not responsible for curing all of societys ills (drugs, domestic violence), and would likely have legal problems if they tried to. They are responsible, however, for keeping their franchise intact. If they come to the conclusion that removing their most talanted player makes the franchise better, so be it...it is their right....

 

Incidently, I not so long ago saw an NFL films feature about the Steve Young era 49ers. They showed the play where Young flings the pass into the endzone, time running out, double coverage, to a very young Owens to knock the Packers out of the playoffs. Owens reaction to his amazing catch was very telling. First he starts convulsing, and balling his eyes out. Tears of joy pour down his face...his first words as the reporters shove mics into his face are "I have arrived!" You could see the dollar signs in his eyes...

 

In the end, Terrell Owens has nobody to blame for his predicament but himself...being great at one aspect of ones' job does not excuse you from the other responsibilites of your job...especially in corporate America!

[Orton's Arm]

The bottom line is, the guy is a great player, but a bad teammate, and a spoiled child who desperately needs a "time-out". 

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Are you talking about TO or McNabb? When McNabb told the media the team would be better off without TO, he became a bad teammate in my book.

 

This year, the Eagles have yet to win a game without TO. So McNabb looks like a spoiled child to me, because he chased away their best player because of a few comments.

[Orton's Arm]

May I ask, what did TO do in return when the game was over? Nevermind, we all know what he did. He began blasting McNabb publicly every chance he got and to anyone who would listen.

It was obvious to everyone that McNabb's slowness in the huddle in the 4th quarter really hurt the Eagles. Considering how hard TO worked to play in that game, I can see where he'd be frustrated that his teammate let him down. That doesn't make his comments okay, but you could see why he might say them. The only other negative comments about McNabb that I remember was the thing about the Eagles being better off with Favre. Those two comments hardly constitute "blasting McNabb publicly every chance he got." I've also heard TO's comments sound much more reasonable when taken in context.

TO then decided that last year's signing bonus he got from the Eagles was so nice, he wanted another. Renegotiating a contract, one year after signing and darned good contract, is way out of line. The Eagles basically said no, which was just and proper.

I completely agree with this.

 

McNabb has shown amazing restraint in his comments towards TO,

Not true. McNabb said the Eagles would be better off without TO.

 

Still not finished, he decides to pick a fight with Hugh Douglas,

How do you know which of the two chose to pick that fight?

 

none of them blasted the Bills organization for a lack of recognition for personal honors,

Maybe not in 1989. But toward the end of his career, Reed was on the verge of breaking some team record or something for the most receptions. In the game he broke the record, he complained that the passes he was being thrown were too short. He basically said the only reason he was being thrown to was to help him break the record, and that he wasn't a serious part of the team's plan to win the game.

[Dawgg]

You see, that's the thing. McNabb did not show restraint. He pretty much gave up on TO and made it impossible for them to coexist. If he is truly a competitor, there's no way he wants TO off the team. Look at what he said after losing to an inferior Redskins team on a Sunday night:

"We lost, but we lost as a team"

 

That is the stupidest thing I have ever heard. He basically admitted that he would rather lose than win with TO on board. True leaders have thick skin and put winning above all. TO never commited a crime and he has no off-field problems. Banning him from the team was not necessary by any means.

 

I'm no McNabb fan. To me, he's a great athlete who's playing 15-20 lbs heavier than he should be, and a QB who's not the most accurate passer. Yet, he is a competitor, a team player, and someone who showed remarkable restraint in his statements to or about TO. I wonder how many here could have done the same.

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[DieHardFan]

The league will do anything to protect the Laurie's (if that is how you spell Philly's owner) and the Kraft's... There is just too much tied up in these guys.

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Huh, the league may have become bureaucratic and bloated but the owners still are the league.

[Buftex]

Not true. McNabb said the Eagles would be better off without TO. 

 

 

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That may be true, but McNabbs' comments were made after Owens was suspended...I am sure he felt it was the best thing for the team, and he was expressing solidarity with his coach. I have no doubt that McNabb voiced his opinion of Owens in the locker room...but there is a big difference between that and going public with it...trying to paint McNabb as the villian in this case is just kind of silly...Terrell Owens did this to himself....

[Dawgg]

You're right Terrell Owens did this to himself... McNabb did this to the team.

 

This was a personal thing between McNabb and Owens. It didn't really affect anyone else on the team... and because McNabb wasn't man enough to suck it up, Eagles players were forced to take a side -- and of course, they had no choice but to side with McNabb because it's his way or the high way.

 

But you can see the frustration coming out now... players are slowly starting to speak out that they would love to have Owens back, but of course, McNabb's mouth is shut... and it's a shame because Owens makes them a better team on the field. That matters to most players on that team, not Donovan F. McNabb.

 

 

 

That may be true, but McNabbs' comments were made after Owens was suspended...I am sure he felt it was the best thing for the team, and he was expressing solidarity with his coach.  I have no doubt that McNabb voiced his opinion of Owens in the locker room...but there is a big difference between that and going public with it...trying to paint McNabb as the villian in this case is just kind of silly...Terrell Owens did this to himself....

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[Buftex]

You're right Terrell Owens did this to himself... McNabb did this to the team.

 

This was a personal thing between McNabb and Owens.  It didn't really affect anyone else on the team... and because McNabb wasn't man enough to suck it up, Eagles players were forced to take a side -- and of course, they had no choice but to side with McNabb because it's his way or the high way. 

 

But you can see the frustration coming out now... players are slowly starting to speak out that they would love to have Owens back, but of course, McNabb's mouth is shut... and it's a shame because Owens makes them a better team on the field.  That matters to most players on that team, not Donovan F. McNabb.

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Well, the Eagles have determined that he is undermining the "team" concept that they are going for as an organization. Like I said before, what they are telling Owens, and the rest of the Eagles squad, no matter how good you are at your job on the field, you are not excused from other responsibilties to the team. If you read the litany of incidents involving Owens, the Eagles were more than patient with him.

[Orton's Arm]

Well, the Eagles have determined that he is undermining the "team" concept that they are going for as an organization.  Like I said before, what they are telling Owens, and the rest of the Eagles squad, no matter how good you are at your job on the field, you are not excused from other responsibilties to the team.  If you read the litany of incidents involving Owens, the Eagles were more than patient with him.

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Well, now they have a big, happy team, with everyone saying the same politically correct gobbledygook. Too bad they don't have any wins without TO. At least McNabb doesn't have to worry about a teammate stepping on his ego, and maybe that's more important than winning football games anyway.

[Webster Guy]

Are you talking about TO or McNabb? When McNabb told the media the team would be better off without TO, he became a bad teammate in my book.

 

This year, the Eagles have yet to win a game without TO. So McNabb looks like a spoiled child to me, because he chased away their best player because of a few comments.

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Haha... for some reason you choose to defend T.O. Okay, fine... you bring up quotes like the first paragraph (above). Do you have a link? You memory is extremely selective.

 

As for McNabb being a spoiled child and not T.O., now I know you are just a flamer. OK, you had me going. Good one. Haha. I thought you were serious until that comment. Ya got me, I fell for it.

[Like A Mofo]

McNabb this year has shown me one thing:  he is a total loser.  He, not TO, puts himself in front of the team.  Because of his whining and pouting about TO's antics, the team suspended him and lost 3 divisional games in a row by a small margin.  I lost a lot of respect for him that he couldn't man up and put up with TO because he helps that team win.

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So you are telling me ONLY McNabb had a major problem with T.O??? Please!!

 

TO's antics go WAY beyond McNabb if you ask me....

[Dawgg]

There are approximately 60 players on that team. TO alienated one: Donovan McNabb.

 

The remaining players for the most part remained neutral. The only one who was outspoken against him was that Hugh Douglas, who in my mind, needs to go away. He's a total moron who past his prime a long time ago.

 

So you are telling me ONLY McNabb had a major problem with T.O???  Please!!

 

TO's antics go WAY beyond McNabb if you ask me....

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[jester43]

i was driving through philly today and listening to WIP. howard eskin had a copy of the 38 pages of testimony from the hearings. long story short, it was NOT just about T.O.vs. McNabb. Based on not only the testimony of the hearings, but transcripts of actual phone conversations, T.O. was COMMITTED to disrupting the eagles in retaliation for not re-doing his contract. the thing with mcnabb was only an EXCUSE to keep it up. howard read from 3 lengthy letters from reid to owens regarding specific incidents.

 

i am no fan of mcnabb; i don't care what a solid citizen he is. but bottom line is, that owens has been looking to cause trouble since day 1. and every bills fan should be ecstatic he didn't get away with it, because you KNOW willis was watching the proceedings VERY closely. the nfl arbitrator probably saved the bills a major headache next year.

 

and btw, much was made of the fact that gene upshaw "fired" the arbitrator in retaliation for the ruling...turns out the guy's contract was up in 10 days anyway and he was not6 coming back! lol....what a bull sh-- grandstand move by the nflpa, who SHOULD be distancing themselves from ownes for the sake of their own credibility!! what balls it takes to "fire" a guy who is about to quit next week!!

[youngunz]

I can't believe some people are actually sticking up for TO!     

Are you serious? The guy is a complete cancer. It's not like it was a one time thing, either.

 

Put it this way...A work example. If you criticize a fellow employee constantly, and say how you are bigger than your company, etc., do ya really think they are going to keep you?

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Please stop using examples between normal everday life and professional atheletes. There is just no comparison. (this is not directed at you personally).

 

It just kills me how people try to rationalize the actions taken by athletes either on the field or surrounding their workplace, with a comparison to the everyday Joe. We as the everyday Joe do not get to beat the crap out of an employee and then get told to wait a few minutes to cool off, nor do we go in to Job interviews saying what we will get paid or that we will hold out. And we as the average Joe do not have Ed Kilgore or John Murphy banging down our door for an exclusive interview. So with that said please stop using the average Joe comparison to any Professional athelete

[meazza]

So you are telling me ONLY McNabb had a major problem with T.O???  Please!!

 

TO's antics go WAY beyond McNabb if you ask me....

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he only called his former Qb a homosexual, and ya any guy who marries a playboy playmate is definately a homosexual

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

not that there's anything wrong with that

[Dawgg]

So true...

 

Please stop using examples between normal everday life and professional atheletes. There is just no comparison. (this is not directed at you personally).

 

It just kills me how people try to rationalize the actions taken by athletes either on the field or surrounding their workplace, with a comparison to the everyday Joe. We as the everyday Joe do not get to beat the crap out of an employee and then get told to wait a few minutes to cool off, nor do we go in to Job interviews saying what we will get paid or that we will hold out. And we as the average Joe do not have Ed Kilgore or John Murphy banging down our door for an exclusive interview. So  with that said please stop using the average Joe comparison to any Professional athelete

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[gmac17]

i was driving through philly today and listening to WIP. howard eskin had a copy of the 38 pages of testimony from the hearings. long story short, it was NOT just about T.O.vs. McNabb. Based on not only the testimony of the hearings, but transcripts of actual phone conversations, T.O. was COMMITTED to disrupting the eagles in retaliation for not re-doing his contract. the thing with mcnabb was only an EXCUSE to keep it up. howard read from 3 lengthy letters from reid to owens regarding specific incidents.

 

 

stop making stuff up, don't you know it is just that McNabb couldn't take a comment or two from T.0. and nothing else?

[Orton's Arm]

As for McNabb being a spoiled child and not T.O., now I know you are just a flamer.  OK, you had me going.  Good one.  Haha.  I thought you were serious until that comment.  Ya got me, I fell for it.

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Quite frankly I think both McNabb and TO have been acting like spoiled children. If in kindergarten those two had learned how to play nice, the Eagles would today have a better record.