Terrell Owens told the Philadelphia Inquirer on Friday that "I'll be there" when the Eagles' veterans report for the start of training camp Aug. 1, but he quickly added that he won't be a happy camper.
"I mean, the bottom line is that I still believe I deserve a new contract," the wide receiver said. "I still believe I deserve more than what they've given me. But I'm not stupid. I'm not about to miss training camp, get fined every day and give them even more reasons to keep from paying me.
<!-- END LEAD --><!-- START REST -->"I'll be there. But I won't be happy, I can tell you that much."
The most obvious interpretation of his statement is that Owens is threatening to be a disruptive force in an attempt to get the Eagles to trade him before he ever sets foot on Lehigh's campus.
It's a scenario the Eagles have considered, but they hope does not unfold.
"He needs to come in and behave," a team official said. "I know he's said before that he's incapable of giving less than 100 percent and I really believe that to be true."
It was difficult to tell what was true and what wasn't.
The Eagles said that both Owens and his agent, Drew Rosenhaus, contacted the team to tell them the wide receiver would indeed report to camp.
Rosenhaus said in two different television interviews that it was not 100 percent that Owens would report to training camp.
"We haven't made any decisions yet that are final," the agent told ESPN and Comcast SportsNet. "Things can change. It's not training camp yet. There's no question that Terrell and I are thinking very strongly about reporting to camp. ... I don't think a final decision will be made until [that] day."
Chicago Tribune
"I mean, the bottom line is that I still believe I deserve a new contract," the wide receiver said. "I still believe I deserve more than what they've given me. But I'm not stupid. I'm not about to miss training camp, get fined every day and give them even more reasons to keep from paying me.
<!-- END LEAD --><!-- START REST -->"I'll be there. But I won't be happy, I can tell you that much."
The most obvious interpretation of his statement is that Owens is threatening to be a disruptive force in an attempt to get the Eagles to trade him before he ever sets foot on Lehigh's campus.
It's a scenario the Eagles have considered, but they hope does not unfold.
"He needs to come in and behave," a team official said. "I know he's said before that he's incapable of giving less than 100 percent and I really believe that to be true."
It was difficult to tell what was true and what wasn't.
The Eagles said that both Owens and his agent, Drew Rosenhaus, contacted the team to tell them the wide receiver would indeed report to camp.
Rosenhaus said in two different television interviews that it was not 100 percent that Owens would report to training camp.
"We haven't made any decisions yet that are final," the agent told ESPN and Comcast SportsNet. "Things can change. It's not training camp yet. There's no question that Terrell and I are thinking very strongly about reporting to camp. ... I don't think a final decision will be made until [that] day."
Chicago Tribune
