Former Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Terrell Owens was a polarizing presence during his days in the NFL. Whether Owens was doing sit-ups in his driveway, pulling a sharpie out of his sock to sign an autograph after scoring a touchdown on Monday Night Football or wearing a cycling outfit to practice after a spat with Bill Parcells, Owens rubbed many during his career the wrong way.
Nevertheless, there is no denying Owens numbers; second in receiving yards at the time of his retirement with 15,934 and third in receiving touchdowns with 156. So when it came time to evaluate whether Owens career was Hall of Fame worthy, a career that should have been deemed first-ballot caliber was snubbed for two years and was on the cusp of being snubbed again in 2018.
In steps Terez Paylor, who tragically passed away last week at the young age of 37. Paylor had a much different perspective on Owen’s career. As a young Black male, the former national NFL writer for Yahoo! Sports had different viewpoint than many of the older white voters that sit on the Hall of Fame committee. Speaking to Newsday, NBC Sports Bay Area reporter Matt Maiocco and Owen’s Hall of Fame presenter in 2017 and 2018 recalled the following.
“To hear a young Black man talk about what drew him to the sport that he loved and what made an impression on him as a young man growing up was a perspective that I had personally never considered . . . Terez basically said that, growing up, that’s what a Hall of Famer in his community, among his friends and the people who shared the same experiences, looked like. Boom, that right there, that’s a Hall of Famer. I think that opened people’s eyes to a new perspective and a way of defining what a Hall of Famer is.”
If it wasn’t for Paylor being able to change voters minds Owens may still be waiting for his induction. When learning about Paylor’s bold speech on Owens behalf last week, Owens told Newsday,
“I get glassy-eyed just thinking about it. . . It’s so unfortunate that I’m learning of this after this man’s passing. Honestly, I wish I could have spoken to him to say thank you for what he did . . . For him to be that young in a room of elders and people that have been on that committee for some time, that speaks volumes.”
A former third-round pick for the San Francisco 49ers, Owens played three seasons for the Cowboys from 2006 through 2008. While his time in Dallas may be best known for his emotional “that’s my quarterback” post game speech after the Cowboys 2007 playoff loss, there is no denying how great the Hall of Fame receiver’s career was in Dallas. Over Owens three seasons with the Cowboys he posted 235 receptions, 3,587 yards and 38 touchdowns. During Owens time with Dallas fans were always sure to have their popcorn ready.
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