One NFL Hall of Famer extended a helping hand, he says, but a future Hall of Famer turned away.
Former player Terrell Owens claims he offered to return to the gridiron in 2022 in a bid to help out Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and was ghosted by Brady.
Owens, appearing on The Bubba Dub Show this week, said that after Antonio Brown theatrically quit the team mid-game – stripping off his uniform and running off the field shirtless – the Hall of Fame receiver reached out to Brady about a comeback.
The then-48-year-old, who hadn’t played an NFL game in 12 years, was met with silence.
“The year that AB (Brown) went crazy on him, I was talking about coming back and, at that point in time, it was the end of the season, I didn’t need to play a full season. They just needed somebody to at least fill some holes with AB leaving at the receiver position,” Owens told host Jerry Morgan.
“I reached out to him (Brady) through Randy (Moss) and a couple of other people, just to come in and play third down and red zone situations.
“You know this dude really ignored me, bro?”
Owens took the slight as a complete lack of respect from the sport’s GOAT, a seven-time Super Bowl champion.
“I reached out to him and he tried to play me off,” Owens continued.
“I know this is probably going to make news or whatever, but I don’t really care because it shows you how the lack of respect is.
“When they get in front of you, they want to act like they respect you.”
Owens played 15 years in the NFL, racking up 15,934 receiving yards on 1,078 catches with 153 touchdowns. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2018 and ranks third in career receiving yards and TDs.
With those numbers, he said his resume should have spoken for itself.
“So, me, understand that I’m a Hall of Famer, now you’ve seen what I’ve done on the football field, but it shows you a little bit of how arrogance comes into play,” he said.
“Tom Brady could have made that happen.”
How much would Owens have contributed? The receiving great said he could’ve stepped in and helped in third down and red-zone situations, potentially pushing Brady and Bucs to the top of the mountain.
“He could have had his eighth Super Bowl,” Owens speculated.
The Bucs season ended with a second-round loss to the eventual champion Los Angeles Rams – a game in which Brady nearly led the team on a brilliant comeback that ultimately fell short.
That loss was Brady’s final NFL game as he retired following the season’s end.