From Saturday's Globe and Mail
March 27, 2009 at 10:53 PM EDT
Wide receiver Terrell Owens believes Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones reneged on a personal commitment to keep him on contract, and suggested that the owner's son, Stephen Jones, the executive vice-president of the NFL team, was behind his release this month.
"You hear all the speculation, and you talk to the owner of the team, and he reassures you, you're not going anywhere and then, out of left-field … you get blindsided," Owens, 35, said in an interview with Rogers Sportsnet, to be broadcast tomorrow evening.
Owens, who had signed a four-year contract extension with Dallas last summer, will instead play with the Buffalo Bills on a one-year contract in the 2009 season. With his production having dropped after signing the $34-million (all currency U.S.) deal last June, he became expendable when the Cowboys traded three draft picks to the Detroit Lions in October for Roy Williams, who signed a $45-million extension, with $27-million guaranteed. Owens was also considered to be a divisive locker room presence.
"I know whole-heartedly he [Jerry Jones] wanted me there," Owens said. "There were some people I know who got in his ear that pressured him to make that decision. For that, it's sad. You let two or three people conspire to get me out of the situation."
Owens caught 69 passes for 1,052 yards and 10 touchdowns last season. When Jones released Owens, he said: "You take age as a consideration. … In this particular case, we have an outstanding player in Roy Williams, and it was a significant factor in the decision I made to release Terrell."
Why Buffalo?
"Why not?" Owens said. "They were really after me, they wanted me, despite everything that had been said negatively about me. It was a no-brainer."
Owens told USA Today he doesn't report for voluntary workouts by custom, and won't change his routine for the Bills.
