Terrell Owens makes his on-field debut with the Buffalo Bills
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By SAL MAIORANA
ORCHARD PARK — Terrell Owens looked out at the horde of reporters standing before him armed with cameras, notebooks and digital recorders, flashed that Hollywood smile of his, and reminded everyone that "this is nothing; this is light."
Well, maybe in San Francisco, Philadelphia and Dallas — the first three stops during his sure-to-be Hall of Fame pro football career — Monday's super-sized media gathering would have been considered "light," but in Buffalo it was a veritable crush.
Especially considering that all the Bills did at their indoor practice field house was conduct the first of a scheduled 14 routine and pad-less practice sessions (technically called organized team activities because attendance for all but the final three workouts on June 9-11 is not mandatory).
"It's not ordinary for us," safety Donte Whitner said with a smile when he met with the same group of media members after the 100-minute workout. "We knew it would be like this. It's different, but I guess we'll get used to it."
The Bills don't have a choice. Owens, one of the biggest stars in the NFL, is now one of them as he signed a one-year, $6.4 million free-agent contract on March 7 making him one of the highest-paid Bills. Wherever he goes, he commands attention. Lots of it. Upon his arrival at the Buffalo airport just before midnight on Sunday, Owens was greeted by a boisterous contingent of Bills fans (including one dressed as a box of popcorn, parodying the time when Owens told Dallas Cowboy fans it was going to be a show and they'd better get their popcorn ready) and a few members of the team's cheerleading unit, the Jills.
"It was awesome," he said of the reception. "Honestly, it was priceless. I really didn't expect it and it's the biggest welcome I've ever had. Going down the escalator and seeing the big crowd of people really got me pumped for this year."
Then came the media storm Monday. Along with all of the regional TV stations and newspapers in Rochester and Buffalo (and a couple from Toronto), crews were also present from ESPN and NFL Network to chronicle Owens' every move.
And Owens is one of those players who transcends football, as evidenced by the camera crew from cable television's VH1, which was in town to do some filming for Owens' reality TV show that begins in July.
"It's fun having everyone here," said quarterback Trent Edwards. "There's more fans, there's more of you guys watching us and covering us, and I'm excited about it. You bring in a guy like Terrell, he's going to bring in more (media) and that's kind of the nature of the beast here."
One thing the VH1 cameras surely recorded was Owens receiving the key to the city from Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown in a ceremony at the Albright-Knox Art Gallery on Monday afternoon.
Asked what he was going to do with the key (he also received one in Dallas), Owens laughed and said: "I don't know, we'll have to see."
On the field, Owens participated in all of the activities, which were confined basically to positional work: 11-on-11 team sessions, 7-on-7 passing drills and stretching. At the end of the 11-on-11 portion, Owens ran a deep route down the right sideline and made a terrific catch of an Edwards pass as he beat cornerback Terrence McGee one-on-one.
"That's why we brought him in here, to do that," Edwards said.
Owens appeared genuinely excited to be with his new teammates and he said he looks forward to learning more about them, and more about the offense, which is why he plans on participating in most of the organized team activities.
"This time is very, very valuable because the offense is new to me," he said. "So the more I can be in sync with the team and be around the team and really soak in and absorb all the terminology. ... Right now, my focus is just honing in on the plays and learning the concepts of different pass patterns. And once I get that down, I'll just go out there and play free."
Owens said he felt "like a rookie" on the first day because of the newness of everything, but he was right at home in front of the bank of TV cameras and reporters. "No problem," he said. "Remember, I played in Philadelphia, and I played in Dallas.''
Let the T.O. show begin indeed! Can't wait to see him with the Bills this season. I hope he has himself a great year and can help the Bills get back to the Playoffs.
Terrell Owens makes his on-field debut with the Buffalo Bills
Terrell Owens makes his on-field debut with the Buffalo Bills
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