I have a weird internal conflict regarding Seahawks Legend Terrell Owens and the Hall of Fame.

One one hand, my left hand, my imprecise hand that generally does some things sort of when it needs to, is the biased, selfish, judgmental fan. That hand hates Terrell Owens and is full of joy and laughter watching him get snubbed for the second year in a row and likely for the foreseeable future. I hated Terrell Owens. He was a huge, showboating dick who burned bridges and played for the Eagles and Cowboys and called Jeff Garcia gay for no reason. I don’t know if he invented the concept of the “Diva Receiver”, but he certainly perfected it and stands as the golden example which all others shall be judged.

On the other hand, my right hand, my good, precise, talented and correct hand, Terrell Owens is a Hall of Famer and it’s kind of crap that bitter sportswriters can’t see past their own grudge against him, when it’s really their job to look at it more objectively than the average fan. I’m the average fan, and I can get over it. So should they. Owens is a Hall of Famer and really, I think everyone knows it, but the people who have the power to vote need to flex their muscles just to be petty.

Owens is Top 3 all time in receiving touchdowns at 153. Nobody else active is close enough for that to be in any danger. He’s number 2 all time in receiving yardage. The next closest active player is Larry Fitz, who stands at over 1,500 less. He’s #8 all time in receptions. It doesn’t really matter if you like him or not, Terrell Owens is a Hall of Famer. Yeah, he never won a ring, and yeah, he was a cancerous bridge burning dickhole, but to my knowledge he’s not a criminal or anything and some criminals are in. He also seems like a guy who might have some personal demons we don’t really know, since all we the public saw was his football antics, so maybe jumping immediately into the hate bandwagon shouldn’t be our response. My hatred for him came mostly from a place of rival team hatred.

I’ve reached the point in my sports fandom that I now realize the sports world needs personalities like Owens and I think football is greater for it. We need a heel, it makes it fun to see the heel go down. Owens played the heel perfectly, and he played the game of football brilliantly, and stuck up old sports writers need to accept that he should be in Canton. He was certainly a better choice than Terrell Davis, who had a pretty good 4 seasons and died. If HoF enshrinement is about numbers and legacy, Owens has the numbers locked up and his legacy, while turbulent, is notable. He should go into the Hall as one of the greatest heels, as the greatest diva, because in some ways, his actions have left a much bigger legacy than many people already in. Terrell Owens is van important figure in Football Lore, which I’ve always personally found a vital piece to why someone deserves the Hall.

It’s going to be a firestorm next year when Randy Moss gets in and Owens doesn’t. Randy was also a dick, but he’s spent his retired years being cozy with the media and making everyone like him again. That’s basically the one difference. Randy did the backstage politicizing Owens has not. If Randy isn’t a first ballot I’ll be shocked and find everyone who didn’t vote for him and punch them in the face.

Also yes, this is in the Hall of Fame

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But TO is not