When we last checked in on former NFL receiver Terrell Owens, he was getting tossed over the boards in the second game of his IFL career with the Allen Wranglers.
Four total games into his second career in a third-tier league (he skipped two of the team’s road games, presumably because the home teams didn’t offer him enough money to show up), Owens still wants back into the NFL.
He recently told Jim Miller and Derrick Brooks of Sirius NFL Radio that another stint at the highest level of the sport remains on the radar. “Definitely, that is the plan,” Owens said, via an item Miller recently wrote for CSNChicago.com. “I’m keeping myself in shape. . . . We’re 5-1 right now and I’m having fun. I’m using it as a way to keep myself in shape to play a few more years.”
Owens wasn’t signed by any NFL team in 2011. He tore an ACL during the lockout.
“As far as health, I’m fine,” Owens said. “I’m just looking for an opportunity. The Indoor League is quicker . . . it’s faster than the outdoor game. It has enhanced my route running ability. If anything, I’ve benefited from, and noticed how quick coming in and out of my breaks I’ve become.”
Owens statistics suggest something short of dominance. He has 16 catches for 193 yards and seven touchdowns, putting him at 41st in the league in receptions, 36th in yards, and tied for 15th in touchdowns.
And yet he’s still surprised that no one has called.
“I cannot say why I’m not on a team other than that I can tell you about what I will give your team every Sunday,” Owens said. “I have always earned my place on a team. I don’t mind coming in playing for the minimum and working my way up.”
At least he’s inching closer toward taking responsibility for his past words and actions.
“A lot of people have said I’ve thrown [quarterbacks] under the bus, this and that and rightfully so,” Owens said. “I have had some moments where I have said some things at the wrong time. Those were years where I was younger, now I’ve matured more. I’m in a different head space so to speak.”
Unfortunately, it may be too late to get anyone to take a chance on the notion that Owens has changed.