The Terrell Owens Hall of Fame fallout continues, nearly two weeks after he was snubbed.
Owens appeared Thursday on WFAN with Mike Francesa to continue the discussion regarding the decision to keep Owens out of Canton for a second straight year. And Owens continued his assault on the selection process.
“Would it be a nice thing? Yes,” Owens said. “But I feel at this point, it’s been purely based on personal feelings, emotions that are being involved. . . . At this point, the Hall of Fame doesn’t mean anything to me.”
Apparently, it means something, because Owens already has had a tailor produce the primary piece of clothing that goes with getting into the Hall of Fame.
“I can get a gold jacket made, which I have already done, that means much more to me than something that they can give me because, again, the system is flawed,” Owens said.
During the interview, Francesa pointed out that three of T.O.'s coaches -- Andy Reid of the Eagles, Bill Parcells of the Cowboys, and Steve Mariucci of the 49ers -- said Owens belongs in the Hall of Fame. Owens embraced Reid’s comments, took issue with Parcells’ contention that Owens wasn’t always reliable, and claimed that Mariucci has “gone behind my back and talked to these reporters” about keeping Owens out.
Owens said he’s irked not because he didn’t make it, but because his character has been impugned in order to justify excluding him.
“From Day One when I stepped into the National Football League, trust me, I know how to be respectful,” Owens said. “I’m not insubordinate. Am I a guy that basically had disagreements and arguments with coaches or players or what have you? What players haven’t? I’m not the first one, and I’m probably not gonna be the last one.”
Owens is right, and the heart of the problem remains that the selection process now supplements undeniable on-field performance with potentially vague and incomplete information regarding events happening from the sideline to the parking lot. Plenty of other guys have gotten in without those issues being fully considered; moving forward, the selection committee will now be expected to apply that same standard to other players with rumored or actual misconduct on the practice field and/or in the locker room.