Terrell Owens a Definite 1st-Ballot Hall of Famer

Former National Football League wide receiver Terrell Owens is a first-ballot Hall of Famer. 

There are certain sports statements that are seen as facts without any further explanation required. Michael Jordan is the greatest professional basketball player in history. Babe Ruth was a Major League Baseball star unlike any before or after him. Wayne Gretzky will forever be The Great One. Carl Lewis should never again sing a national anthem before any sporting event. 

That Terrell Owens should be elected into the Pro Football Hall of Fame when he is a first-time nominee, which is this year, now joins the list. 

It is hardly a hot take to suggest that Owens should have his day in Canton, Ohio, next August. Current Hall of Fame members Marshall Faulk and Michael Irvin said the same during a short segment produced for NFL.com (h/t Yahoo Sports).

Owens, as Faulk described, put up "funny numbers" during his career, and the wide receiver created nightmare matchups for opponents and for coordinators who had to scheme against him. 

A few statements tossed out there by all-time great players should not be viewed as gospel. The truth of the matter is that Owens should not need support from anybody to enter the Hall of Fame in August 2016. His numbers, those "funny" stats that Faulk referred to, speak for themselves. They tell the tale of a wide receiver who was better than but a few who have ever played the position in the NFL. 

One should examine where Owens sits in record books before voicing any doubt's about the player's Hall of Fame credentials. Owens is, according to Pro-Football-Reference.com, second all-time in receiving yards. Only Jerry Rice is ahead of Owens in this category. Rice and Randy Moss are the only two men to have notched more career touchdowns. Owens is sixth all-time in receptions—behind Rice, Tony Gonzalez, Marvin Harrison, Cris Carter and Tim Brown. 

Rice. Carter. Brown. All three are already in the Hall of Fame. Gonzalez, Harrison and Moss should all receive that honor sooner than later. 

Owens thrice led the NFL in receiving touchdowns, per Pro-Football-Reference.com—in 2001 (16), 2002 (13) and 2006 (13). He was a five-time first-team All-Pro. Owens was, at absolute worst, the second-best wide receiver of the opening decade of the 2000s. 

Should a player need that one breakout performance in a single game to be a true first-ballot Hall of Famer?

It doesn't matter, because Owens had his at Super Bowl XXXIX. Owens, playing for the Philadelphia Eagles at the time, returned from a broken leg and torn ligament weeks ahead of schedule to play against the New England Patriots. He then produced a performance worthy of Most Valuable Player considerations, per ESPN.com, finishing the contest with nine catches and 122 receiving yards. 

Owens being a first-ballot Hall of Famer would be a subject not worthy of discussion if his name were, say, John Smith. This is where the major flaw in the Hall of Fame voting process again rears its ugly head. Owens was more than just a great player who was, at times, unstoppable. He was T.O., a diva wide receiver with a reputation for being a knucklehead. 

Owens eventually became a headache for every team that had his services. The San Francisco 49ers, Eagles and Dallas Cowboys all gave up on Owens when he seemed to have plenty left in the tank.

Owens was the star of that infamous and ridiculous driveway workout/press conference. It was just this past Wednesday when Owens was, according to TMZ Sports, involved in a verbal altercation with a man outside of a Starbucks, because, of course, that happened. 

These incidents linger in the minds of Hall of Fame voters. Voters are humans, humans who have emotions that impact how they remember a player such as Owens. Those emotions and those memories are all that will keep Owens out of the Hall of Fame next year. Perhaps a better system for electing Hall of Fame members will be adopted down the road, but this defective arrangement is what is used today. 

Owens isn't a perfect man. He wasn't a perfect player, a perfect teammate or a perfect pro athlete to coach. Owens also isn't a felon, a character who should never again be associated with the NFL. Opinions on the man and his personality need to be put aside. Owens is a first-ballot Hall of Famer, and the entire process needs to be thoroughly examined if he isn't a member of the Class of 2016.