Owens Might Need Another MRI on Hamstring Cowboys Owner Says T.O.-Parcells Rift Rumor False By JAIME ARON AP Sports SHREVEPORT, La. (Aug. 21) - Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said Monday night that receiver Terrell Owens may have another MRI exam taken to see why his hamstring continues to bother him after weeks of treatment. "Certainly it is sore and he is going to be working to improve that," Jones said during halftime of Dallas ' preseason game against the New Orleans Saints . "We will be evaluating it more tomorrow." The hamstring has bothered Owens since the first week of training camp. He missed the first preseason game, then returned to practice last week, but not enough for coach Bill Parcells to clear him to play against the Saints . Jones said he's not sure whether Owens will be on the field when the team returns to practice Wednesday, which means he could also miss the next preseason game, at home Saturday night against San Francisco . "Soft tissue is such a hard thing to get definitive about," Jones said. "You don't need an MRI to understand it is compromising and bothering him. The main thing is it is not firing. He needs to get to a point where it fires." Jones said it's wrong to think Owens skipped a practice Saturday because he was angry that Parcells ruled him out of the Saints game. "That's humorous," Jones said. "There is no substance to that. That is not the deal. Terrell and Bill are on the same page. They both want him to be out there and without risk of him further hurting his ham. There is no issue here about them being off the page." The Cowboys led the Saints 17-0 at halftime, with quarterback Drew Bledsoe throwing touchdown passes to Terry Glenn and rookie Sam Hurd, who has worked a lot with Owens during training camp. It was Bledsoe's first action of the preseason after also being held out of the opener; he went 12-of-16 for 156 yards, leading Dallas to three scores in four drives. Bledsoe sat out a victory against Seattle last weekend because Parcells wanted to give plenty of work to backup Tony Romo . That's prompted speculation of Bledsoe's job being in jeopardy - something else Jones downplayed. "I've never heard any debate about that from anyone on our staff," Jones said.
Smith of the panthers is sitting out of practice due to hamstring problems, and so is Ward of the Steelers, yet no one is saying anything about it. And that is because they are injured and so is Owens. So this should be a non issue. while it may be true that the other two are familiar with their offenses, that doesn't change the fact that they are injured. Owens has been a malcontent in the past, and he may very well be one with the Cowboys too, but in this case, it should be a non issue. Why would the Cowboys even won't to risk his health for the regular season for meaningless preseason games. This is just the press needing something to talk about.
I have to wonder the same thing. Is there truly a problem or is the press just creating a problem. If it was any otehr injured playing where Discovery gear on the bike people would say its funny but because its TO they say he is demandin attention and showing up the team. The preess is certainly biased against TO. One has to wonder if there really is an issue here between Parcells and TO or its just an issue between TO and the media. If TO is not hurt and is causing problems and eventually flunks out of Dallas who else will take him. He might find a job but at a sharply reducded salary. Essentially this is his last chance. One would expect him to be on his best behavior for at least a year. TO should be playing with a chip on his shoulder this year with a lot to prove on and off the field.
Yes, it's all a conspiracy to make poor Terrell Owens look bad, just like he says. He may get all of the attention he wants, but he also gets all of the negative attention he deserves.
I'm usually good for laying blame on the press for sport, but I follow T.O.'s controversies carefully, and I don't think this one can be blamed on the press. Not entirely. Less than 24 hours after he signed his deal with the Cowboys, T.O. released a rap song announcing how he "had the whole world's undivided attention," and so forth. http://www.myspace.com/official_terrellowens. This, after absolutely destroying what was a Superbowl team last year. If you haven't read it, the mediation transcript is pretty telling. So T.O. now has an injured hamstring. Fine. The MRI revealed no damage, but let's give him the benefit of the doubt and assume that he's really injured. He walks around Cowboy camp with his own personal training staff as a posse. T.O. sets himself up to be a spectacle. It would be rude to not enjoy the spectacle that he took the time and effort to produce for us. T.O. WANTS us to be watching T.O.. That's all I'm doing. My own thoughts are that T.O. probably did "tweak" something, but he's using this opportunity to whiz on shrubs down in Dallas so that everyone knows that (a) he won - he got what he wanted, and (b) winning didn't include him turning into Todd Pinkston overnight. He's going to be the BIG personality in the room, wherever that room may be. Just my thoughts.
I agree with you SJ, it's going to be real interesting to watch who Jerry Jones actually backs. His head coach or his "star" player. Stay tuned!
Heres one how bout the media stops giving T.O air time and he might act normal but if he gets the cameras which he is looking for hell keep it up !
Those two idiots deserve each other. I thought you retired Parcells? You didn't have to get Owens. You could have quit if Jones really stepped over you, since I think that violates your contract. Don't hide behind Jones now that you realize the TO signing was stupid. Man up and admit you were stupid, and cut TO now.
t.o. "reaggravates" his hamstring RVING, Texas -- Terrell Owens said he reaggravated his left hamstring injury when he returned to practice last week for the Dallas Cowboys and almost certainly will miss his third straight preseason game. "Just because the MRI doesn't show anything, that doesn't mean that I'm not hurting." Terrell Owens "It's frustrating, but it's not where I need it to be to play and perform like I need to," Owens said Wednesday. "So at this point, I'm going to be smart about it." Asked if he could play if this was the regular season, Owens said, "I doubt it, not the way I need to play." After missing 14 consecutive training camp practices and the preseason opener in Seattle because of the hamstring problem that has bothered him all month, Owens returned for five practices last week. He missed the final full workout in Oxnard, Calif., last weekend and didn't play Monday night against New Orleans in Shreveport, La., after the hamstring tightened up on him. Owens was back on the field last Wednesday after Cowboys owner Jerry Jones suggested that the receiver needed to learn how to practice at less than 100 percent. His first practice back came only hours after coach Bill Parcells reiterated that Owens needed to be on the field. "I felt like I was never pressured to get back on the field. I just tried to compromise with some people, just try to be around the team and get back out there," Owens said. "It just flared up again." Owens first felt a twinge in his hamstring Aug. 2, but an MRI taken three days later was clear. Owens said another MRI taken this week was also negative, with only a little fluid in the hamstring. "Just because the MRI doesn't show anything, that doesn't mean that I'm not hurting," Owens said. The Cowboys play their first home preseason game Saturday night against San Francisco, Owens' original team. They play their final preseason game five nights later. It's possible that Owens might not play in a game for Dallas until the Sept. 10 season opener at Jacksonville. He hasn't played in a game with quarterback Drew Bledsoe, and the Dallas offense is different from the West Coast scheme Owens played in for the 49ers and Philadelphia. "He is pretty much up on what to do," Parcells said. "He has been very attentive in meetings and trying to learn. There are some adjustments for him to make. Where he is and actually doing it is hard to tell." Copyright 2006 by The Associated Press
