Terrell Owens was frustrated Sunday night and that's a good thing.
Owens did not have a great game against the Packers, in fact it could be argued he had a pretty poor game. Yeah, I know he showed a lot of hustle and made some outstanding plays as a run blocker and was somehow able to run down Nick Collins on the interception return, but it's that type of play that proves to me he had the ability to play better as a receiver (Can you imagine what Felix Jones was thinking as he was sprinting down the sideline and then all of a sudden he hears Owens screaming "Come on, let's go!!" right behind him?). Somehow Owens is in the best shape of his career and unquestionably faster than he has ever been before. Yet for some reason he has all but disappeared in the last six quarters.
I can hear the arguments now: Owens was double covered, he was pressed at the line by Charles Woodson, his drawing of coverage enabled others in the game to make plays...but the thing is Terrell Owens considers himself the best receiver in the NFL. If he is the best receiver out there, then he needs to find a way to beat press coverage and get himself open. And when he is open he needs to catch the passes thrown to him, something that did not happen Sunday night. Owens realizes this, he knows he didn't have the greatest of games and it showed in his attitude. I would be disappointed if he was all happy go lucky afterward. Owens knows that he is now a team leader and the offense's best weapon; for the Cowboys to have success he needs to be involved.
It's only one game, but Owens must be focused on doing whatever it takes to make a bigger impact this week. Last year he had his best game as a Cowboy at home against the Redskins and you know he is itching to do the same thing again. Unfortunately it won't come as easy as it did last year. The Redskins are playing pretty good against the pass as they were able to hold in check the high powered offenses of New Orleans and Arizona. You can be assured that the Redskins coaches have been showing their secondary film of Owens torching them for four touchdowns last season, and coming up with a scheme to prevent that from happening again. Sound familiar? It should, because that's going to be every team's objective for the rest of the season. But Owens and the Cowboys will find ways to get around these schemes.
I have full faith in Terrell Owens and his ability to bounce back from sub-par games. Last season he had three games in a row where he had low numbers; next thing you know Owens goes insane on the field, catching 11 touchdowns in seven games while averaging 17 yards per catch. I can see Owens going into a similar tear in the next month, but it needs to start against the Redskins. Owens was frustrated last week and he will be playing with a chip on his shoulder to prove that he still has it, despite the plays he made against the Eagles.
How good of a game should Owens have? I'd say 12 catches for 154 yards and three touchdowns should do the trick.