watermock
03-19-2006, 03:02 PM
You have to admit that Parcells absence was rather odd. I smell something out of a soap opera love/hate triangle in the early production stages. T.O. did seem to come in low key with that overblown white designer suit you would never find, but hey, when you have to feed your family, you have to shop at Thrifty Mart Clothiers. Your family and team come first. They gotta eat, right?
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This question, of course, presumes that he even was thinking. Not about the kavorka of a receiver with unmatched physical skills and a penchant for ringing up touchdowns, but about the manner in which the receiver will mesh with the rest of the team's employees.
The early reaction to the signing of Terrell Owens among the group that counts the most -- his new teammates -- is strongly negative. Strongly.
Part of the problem is that Owens is a well-documented locker room miscreant, a guy who can't be trusted to follow the rules that apply to the domain in which 53 oversized men sweat, shower, shampoo, sh-t, and shave. He publicly called out one of his quarterbacks, and he publicly called the other one gay.
Football players aren't necessarily rocket surgeons, but they generally have good instincts. And if a guy smells like a turd and looks like a turd and acts like a turd . . . well, you get the picture.
Complicating matters is the perception among Dallas players that Keyshawn Johnson, who despite his own flaws was well-liked in the Dallas locker room, was jettisoned by Jerry Jones in an effort to land T.O.
But perhaps the biggest factor fueling discontent among the Dallas players was the absence of coach Bill Parcells from the press conference that introduced Owens as the newest member of the team. Regardless of the actual reason for the Tuna's non-attendance, some of the players (and "some" might be an understatement) interpret his absence as a message that he disagrees with the move.
In our view, Parcells needs to make a statement -- quickly -- embracing Owens. If he doesn't, more and more of the players (we predict) will conclude that this is the latest example of the subtle power struggle in which Jones and Parcells have engaged for the past three years.
The difference is that this one could blow up the relationship permanently, especially if the players refuse to even give Owens a chance until the coach gives him a thumb's up -- and if the coach refuses to take his fist out of his jacket.
OWENS DEAL GOOD, NOT GREAT
Apart from the question of whether T.O.'s new teammates and head coach will greet him with open arms, the biggest issue regarding Terrell Owens' arrival in the Big D is whether and to what extent he got the big money.
The verdict, in our view, is mixed. Owens, based on what we hear, got the best deal possible under the very bad circumstances he himself created. Indeed, we're hearing that the Cowboys were the only serious player for his services and that other teams, such as the Broncos, were interested in Owens only under a one-year, incentive-heavy contract.
Given that he was operating in a one-team market for a multi-year deal, Owens and his agent, Drew Rosenhaus, finagled a respectable package, in light of Owens' considerable baggage. The numbers as we hear them are $5 million to sign, a $5 million salary in 2006, a $3 million roster bonus in 2007, a $5 million salary in 2007, a $3 million roster bonus in 2008, and a $4 million salary in 2008.
As one league insider told us, "It's three one-year deals." And we agree.
The Cowboys can cut the cord after each of the first two seasons and suffer a relatively modest cap hit. If released before his 2007 roster bonus comes due (and assuming it comes due before June 1), the cap hit will be $3.33 million. If cut after 2007, the cap hit will be only $1.66 million.
Heck, if for some reason the Tuna and the Turd don't mesh during training camp, the Cowboys can cut Owens after June 1 but before the start of the 2006 season and carry only a $1.67 million cap charge in 2006, pushing the balance of the cap hit due to the signing bonus (i.e., $3.33 million) into 2007.
So before the media begins gushing about the manner in which Owens' three-year contract compares to the first three years of contracts paid to receivers Randy Moss and Marvin Harrison, the key fact to remember is that the magnitude of their signing bonuses made the money payable in the first three seasons virtually guaranteed, since the cap hits resulting from the eight-figure signing bonuses hauled in by Moss and Harrison would have been crippling.
Judging the contract by the amount of guaranteed money, it's average at best. Owens gets $5 million to sign, identical to the amounts paid to guys like Antwaan Randle El and Antonio Bryant. David Givens received an $8 million signing bonus in Tennessee, and Reggie Wayne hauled in a whopping $12.5 million bonus in Indy.
Finally, we'd be remiss if we were to assess T.O.'s new deal without comparing it to the contract that he already had in Philly. Due to his misconduct, he blew $7.5 million in bonus money that would have been earned this month, $810,000 in 2006 salary, $1.8 million (we're told) in deferred signing bonus money that the team withheld due to his four-game suspension, and roughly $800,000 in lost salary as a result of said suspension.
That's $10.9 million that Owens would have earned through 2006 under his old contract, if he'd merely kept his nose clean and his mouth shut. Instead, he'll make $10 million through 2006 from the Cowboys.
So if being $900,000 in the hole as compared to where he would have been is considered a good deal, then it was a good deal.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
This question, of course, presumes that he even was thinking. Not about the kavorka of a receiver with unmatched physical skills and a penchant for ringing up touchdowns, but about the manner in which the receiver will mesh with the rest of the team's employees.
The early reaction to the signing of Terrell Owens among the group that counts the most -- his new teammates -- is strongly negative. Strongly.
Part of the problem is that Owens is a well-documented locker room miscreant, a guy who can't be trusted to follow the rules that apply to the domain in which 53 oversized men sweat, shower, shampoo, sh-t, and shave. He publicly called out one of his quarterbacks, and he publicly called the other one gay.
Football players aren't necessarily rocket surgeons, but they generally have good instincts. And if a guy smells like a turd and looks like a turd and acts like a turd . . . well, you get the picture.
Complicating matters is the perception among Dallas players that Keyshawn Johnson, who despite his own flaws was well-liked in the Dallas locker room, was jettisoned by Jerry Jones in an effort to land T.O.
But perhaps the biggest factor fueling discontent among the Dallas players was the absence of coach Bill Parcells from the press conference that introduced Owens as the newest member of the team. Regardless of the actual reason for the Tuna's non-attendance, some of the players (and "some" might be an understatement) interpret his absence as a message that he disagrees with the move.
In our view, Parcells needs to make a statement -- quickly -- embracing Owens. If he doesn't, more and more of the players (we predict) will conclude that this is the latest example of the subtle power struggle in which Jones and Parcells have engaged for the past three years.
The difference is that this one could blow up the relationship permanently, especially if the players refuse to even give Owens a chance until the coach gives him a thumb's up -- and if the coach refuses to take his fist out of his jacket.
OWENS DEAL GOOD, NOT GREAT
Apart from the question of whether T.O.'s new teammates and head coach will greet him with open arms, the biggest issue regarding Terrell Owens' arrival in the Big D is whether and to what extent he got the big money.
The verdict, in our view, is mixed. Owens, based on what we hear, got the best deal possible under the very bad circumstances he himself created. Indeed, we're hearing that the Cowboys were the only serious player for his services and that other teams, such as the Broncos, were interested in Owens only under a one-year, incentive-heavy contract.
Given that he was operating in a one-team market for a multi-year deal, Owens and his agent, Drew Rosenhaus, finagled a respectable package, in light of Owens' considerable baggage. The numbers as we hear them are $5 million to sign, a $5 million salary in 2006, a $3 million roster bonus in 2007, a $5 million salary in 2007, a $3 million roster bonus in 2008, and a $4 million salary in 2008.
As one league insider told us, "It's three one-year deals." And we agree.
The Cowboys can cut the cord after each of the first two seasons and suffer a relatively modest cap hit. If released before his 2007 roster bonus comes due (and assuming it comes due before June 1), the cap hit will be $3.33 million. If cut after 2007, the cap hit will be only $1.66 million.
Heck, if for some reason the Tuna and the Turd don't mesh during training camp, the Cowboys can cut Owens after June 1 but before the start of the 2006 season and carry only a $1.67 million cap charge in 2006, pushing the balance of the cap hit due to the signing bonus (i.e., $3.33 million) into 2007.
So before the media begins gushing about the manner in which Owens' three-year contract compares to the first three years of contracts paid to receivers Randy Moss and Marvin Harrison, the key fact to remember is that the magnitude of their signing bonuses made the money payable in the first three seasons virtually guaranteed, since the cap hits resulting from the eight-figure signing bonuses hauled in by Moss and Harrison would have been crippling.
Judging the contract by the amount of guaranteed money, it's average at best. Owens gets $5 million to sign, identical to the amounts paid to guys like Antwaan Randle El and Antonio Bryant. David Givens received an $8 million signing bonus in Tennessee, and Reggie Wayne hauled in a whopping $12.5 million bonus in Indy.
Finally, we'd be remiss if we were to assess T.O.'s new deal without comparing it to the contract that he already had in Philly. Due to his misconduct, he blew $7.5 million in bonus money that would have been earned this month, $810,000 in 2006 salary, $1.8 million (we're told) in deferred signing bonus money that the team withheld due to his four-game suspension, and roughly $800,000 in lost salary as a result of said suspension.
That's $10.9 million that Owens would have earned through 2006 under his old contract, if he'd merely kept his nose clean and his mouth shut. Instead, he'll make $10 million through 2006 from the Cowboys.
So if being $900,000 in the hole as compared to where he would have been is considered a good deal, then it was a good deal.