One last mention of Terrell Owens and the St. Louis Rams, then we can move on with our lives.
Doing an autopsy of the rumor that bubbled up this weekend, it seems like this was a classic example of the agent using some interest to drive up the price of the player.
The ubiquitous "high-ranking official" quoted on Sunday said that an offer could come for Owens the very next day. It's a scoop that a reporter is duty-bound to print, caveat or not. The reality was much different. From today's breakdown in the PD:
The Rams did discuss Owens in recent days, including Monday, when the coaching staff reconvened for the first time after a brief summer vacation. But their interest in Owens never was as great as portrayed in some media reports.
The Rams Park meeting Monday was to discuss a variety of personnel and team issues with training camp fast approaching, not just Owens. And despite speculation that the Rams were trying to bring in Owens for a visit, one source familiar with the situation said that was not the case.
Basically, the Rams talked about Owens, somebody with the team had some communication with T.O.'s agent, Drew Rosenhaus, and the next thing you know it's all but a done deal. Until, of course, it's not a done deal. This looks like pure and simple negotiating tactics to drive up the price.