Terrell Owens: Latest Injury Means It's Time to Retire

Terrell Owens, the flamboyant, controversial and record-breaking wide receiver for the Cincinnati Bengals, is literally on his last leg.  

T.O. reportedly had surgery within the past month to repair a torn ACL and is expected to miss six months on the field.  

He is also expected to return.  

Why?  

It seems that Terrell feels invincible. One must admit his quick comeback from a broken leg to play in the Super Bowl against the New England Patriots, which resulted in nine receptions and 122 yards, was mighty impressive.

Maybe he is invincible.

Then again, one cannot avoid their own mortality or the process of aging. Age and injury gets the best of the best, even Mr. Terrell Owens.

An article by Adam Moir in The Sport Digest denotes that prime muscle mass and performance peaks at the age of 25. Terrell's peak would have been during the 1998-1999 season with the San Francisco 49ers.  

After 25, muscle mass decreases at four percent per decade until the age of 50.

We have continuous cell, tissue and even organ change as we age. According to the University of Maryland Medical Center, "…the heart of a 20-year-old is capable of pumping about 10 times the amount that is actually needed to preserve life. After age 30, an average of 1% of this reserve is lost each year." 

“How fast you can throw a ball or run or swerve a steering wheel depends on how speedily brain cells fire off commands to muscles. Fast firing depends on good insulation for your brain’s wiring. Now new research suggests that in middle age, even healthy people begin to lose some of that insulation in a motor-control part of the brain—at the same rate that their speed subtly slows. That helps explain why it’s hard to be a world-class athlete after 40,” concludes Dr. George Bartzokis, a neurologist at the University of California, Los Angeles, who led the work.

An age study of NFL wide receivers confirms the drastic reduction in yardage after the age of 33.

Just in one year's time, there is 73 percent fewer occurrences of 1,000-yard receiving seasons at the age of 36 than at 35.

What is the prime age of retirement for NFL wide receivers?

Thirty-seven.  

Listed are a few well know NFL wide receivers and their retirement age:

Wes Chandler retired at the age of 32; Henry Ellard, 37; Jimmy Smith, 36; Sterling Sharpe, 29; Andre Reed, 36; Steve Largent, 35; Michael Irvin, 33; Don Hutson, 32; Issac Bruce, 37; Cris Carter, 37; and topping them off is the senior of the pack, Jerry Rice at age 44.

With the wishful thinking of invincibility aside, Terrell's latest surgery on his ACL, 15 years in the NFL and being the age of 37, it seems now is the prime time to retire.

T.O. can retire on top with: 1071 receptions, 15, 865 receiving yards and 152 receiving touchdowns.

Yet then again, he shocked us in 2004. Maybe he will shock us until the age of 44.  

Terrell always has been the flamboyant, controversial and record-breaking wide receiver that never seems to quit. We'll see what age and injury does for him on the field.