T.O. and the Media
Is it even possible to get beyond the rants of the Terrell Owens "drama" that has all but consumed Philly sports coverage. This situation has gotten so ridiculous it's bordering on the surreal. But, my question is: Why the hell is this being covered the way it is?
For the record, I think the Eagles handled this perfectly . . . until they sent Owens home. Unless they were going to send him home permanently, the only intelligent thing to do was ride it out. He wasn't talking, he was reportedly practicing just fine, and there was no real story. It was a fragile situation. Why get into a spat with him over signing autographs, of all things, and hand him the attention he craves? He's a total jackass for continuing to bury McNabb, but if you want to win a damn Super Bowl, you just live with it for one more year.
But everyone — well, almost everyone — is ranting about that. After watching T.O. do sit-ups with microphones in his face on his front lawn, I couldn't help but wonder how much of this is on the media. They are proudly reporting that they are camped out at T.O.'s house, and filming every move he makes. Then they pontificate about the absurdity of it all.
Psst, fellas, you're creating the absurdity. T.O. and his agent, Drew Rosenhaus, are playing you guys like a fiddle.
Rosenhaus got the word out that T.O. wanted a new contract . . . through the media. T.O. kept it in the news for months by talking . . . to the media. The Eagles never blinked (until now), so T.O. started bashing McNabb . . . through the media . . . to put pressure on the Eagles to do something. Rosenhaus practically announced that T.O. would be a pain in the ass to the team until he got what he wanted. And he did it by not talking, and allowing that to be a daily story . . . by the media.
No, the media didn't create this story. They just turned it into a mess. The "story" was that T.O. wanted a new deal, and didn't get one. T.O. showed up to camp. Do we really need to hear that he's not happy every day? How many reporters have said he should just shut-up? Well, stop sticking a microphone in his face, and he won't have much of a voice.
This wasn't news before Thursday since August 1, when T.O. showed up at camp. Before that, it wasn't news since April. But, it's been on the news incessantly since the spring.
So, if we end up kissing our Super Bowl hopes farewell, yes, we can at least partially blame the media.
For the record, I think the Eagles handled this perfectly . . . until they sent Owens home. Unless they were going to send him home permanently, the only intelligent thing to do was ride it out. He wasn't talking, he was reportedly practicing just fine, and there was no real story. It was a fragile situation. Why get into a spat with him over signing autographs, of all things, and hand him the attention he craves? He's a total jackass for continuing to bury McNabb, but if you want to win a damn Super Bowl, you just live with it for one more year.
But everyone — well, almost everyone — is ranting about that. After watching T.O. do sit-ups with microphones in his face on his front lawn, I couldn't help but wonder how much of this is on the media. They are proudly reporting that they are camped out at T.O.'s house, and filming every move he makes. Then they pontificate about the absurdity of it all.
Psst, fellas, you're creating the absurdity. T.O. and his agent, Drew Rosenhaus, are playing you guys like a fiddle.
Rosenhaus got the word out that T.O. wanted a new contract . . . through the media. T.O. kept it in the news for months by talking . . . to the media. The Eagles never blinked (until now), so T.O. started bashing McNabb . . . through the media . . . to put pressure on the Eagles to do something. Rosenhaus practically announced that T.O. would be a pain in the ass to the team until he got what he wanted. And he did it by not talking, and allowing that to be a daily story . . . by the media.
No, the media didn't create this story. They just turned it into a mess. The "story" was that T.O. wanted a new deal, and didn't get one. T.O. showed up to camp. Do we really need to hear that he's not happy every day? How many reporters have said he should just shut-up? Well, stop sticking a microphone in his face, and he won't have much of a voice.
This wasn't news before Thursday since August 1, when T.O. showed up at camp. Before that, it wasn't news since April. But, it's been on the news incessantly since the spring.
So, if we end up kissing our Super Bowl hopes farewell, yes, we can at least partially blame the media.
Comments