Should T.O. be a first ballot Hall of Famer?

[JoeRedskin]

Perhaps - I am operating mostly from memory (I remember Garcia's father being quoted as saying something like "He [Owens] should just shut up and catch the ball"). Yes, SF had issues and were on there way down with or without TO and maybe my "I hate Owens" is slipping in to cloud my memory. So to say he blew up a competetive team may be an overstatement of his influence and of the caliber of team. At the same time, he made sure he was persona non grata in SF and, to my mind, was a major reason why Garcia left.

As I said, based on my recollection of the events, Owens seemed to be the catalyst for the implosion and certainly did nothing to hinder it.

[SmootSmack]

Originally Posted by JoeRedskin

Perhaps - I am operating mostly from memory (I remember Garcia's father being quoted as saying something like "He [Owens] should just shut up and catch the ball"). Yes, SF had issues and were on there way down with or without TO and maybe my "I hate Owens" is slipping in to cloud my memory. So to say he blew up a competetive team may be an overstatement of his influence and of the caliber of team. At the same time, he made sure he was persona non grata in SF and, to my mind, was a major reason why Garcia left.

As I said, based on my recollection of the events, Owens seemed to be the catalyst for the implosion and certainly did nothing to hinder it.

Garcia left because he wouldn't agree to another contract restructuring so the Niners let him go for cap considerations. Plus, it'd be tough to say TO forced Garcia out, or was a major reason he left, since they both left within a couple of days of each other

[freddyg12]

Originally Posted by SmootSmack

Garcia left because he wouldn't agree to another contract restructuring so the Niners let him go for cap considerations. Plus, it'd be tough to say TO forced Garcia out, or was a major reason he left, since they both left within a couple of days of each other

I think Joe's overall point isn't much debated though, TO began his public airing of grievances w/his QBs w/Garcia, even insinuating he was gay.

[SmootSmack]

Originally Posted by freddyg12

I think Joe's overall point isn't much debated though, TO began his public airing of grievances w/his QBs w/Garcia, even insinuating he was gay.

Yeah after they were both no longer teammates, TO made an unnecessary comment in response to a question specifically asking if Garcia was gay. That's not the same as he destroyed a good 49ers team and was the catalyst for Garcia leaving and the franchise falling apart.