The time spent by receiver Terrell Owens trying to return to the NFL has lasted nearly as long as his time in the NFL. Eleven years since he last played in a regular-season game, Owens still wants back in.
The Hall of Fame receiver told TMZ.com that he still has it.
“There’s no doubt, 100 percent, that I can play in the National Football League today,” Owens said.
Here’s the key claim that Owens made. He said that at least one “individual” in the league told Owens to remain in shape, and that he possibly could get a shot.
“With that conversation that I had, they asked me to keep myself in shape -- anything can happen,” Owens told TMZ.com. “And, so, that’s what I’m doing.”
Given that his last chance came in 2012 during the preseason in Seattle, it’s hard to believe that a team would have interest in a 47-year-old receiver nearly a decade later. But, hey, Tom Brady is 44 -- and Tim Tebow got a shot after being out of the NFL since 2013, at a new position.
It’s highly unlikely that Owens will resurface. It’s hard not to respect him for continuing to work so hard to stay in shape and to keep clinging to the desire to come back and show he can still do it.
Owens, a third-round pick of the 49ers way back in 1996, played for San Francisco, Philadelphia, Dallas, Buffalo, and Cincinnati. He entered the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2018.