Dear Terrell Owens...Cry Us a River

Dave MetrickJan 14, 2008

Dear Terrell Owens,

It’s been said there’s no crying in baseball. And based on the physical and mental toughness it takes to play football, I assumed crying was prohibited on the gridiron too.

Apparently, I was wrong.

Because after your Dallas Cowboys lost a home playoff game this past Sunday to the underdog New York Giants, you decided to go all Dick Vermeil at your press conference.

You tearfully explained to the world how “unfair” it would be for the media to “point the finger” at quarterback Tony Romo or “talk about the vacation” he took South of the Border with his gal pal, Jessica Simpson.

“That’s my teammate,” you said before pausing to sniffle dramatically. “That’s my quarterback.”

That’s when I knew something had gone horrifically wrong.

You’re T.O. You don’t come to the defense of your quarterbacks; you throw them under the bus. That’s your thing.

Don’t you remember when you implied in an interview with Playboy that Jeff Garcia was gay?

I believe your exact words were, “If it looks like a rat, and smells like a rat, by golly it is a rat.”

And what about Donovan McNabb? While you were out with a fractured fibula, he led the Eagles to Super Bowl XXXIX. You returned for the big game, played well, and thanked McNabb for a great season by insinuating that the loss was on him.

I believe your exact words were, “I wasn't the guy who got tired in the Super Bowl.”

You can’t actually expect me to believe those tears were really for your quarterback. There has to be something else at play here.

Perhaps your crying jag was less about Mr. Romo and more about the Cowboys’ woeful underachievement in the playoffs. With 11 Pro Bowlers and the No. 1 seed in the NFC, America's Team was the odds-on favorite to win the conference and march into the Super Bowl. But your offense, a certified juggernaut during the regular season, only managed 17 points against an injury-riddled Giant secondary that, truth be told, wasn’t so good when it was healthy.

Instead of glory and immortality, you guys got bubkes.

Somehow, I think that hurts you more than the inevitable media pounding Romo is going to take this offseason.

I'll probably never know what really made you cry, T.O. But what I do know is that somewhere down the road, when times are tough in Big D and the Cowboys’ offense is struggling to get you the rock, the guy who once famously said, “I love me some me” will be all too eager to throw his quarterback under the bus.

Because that's what he does best.

I’ll definitely have my popcorn ready for that one.