Owens hearing Saturday, decision due Sunday

NEW YORK (AP) Terrell Owens' request to be declared a free agent will be heard Saturday by an arbitrator, and a decision is expected the following day.

The standout receiver was prevented from becoming a free agent when the NFL Management Council ruled last week that his agent, David Joseph, failed to void the last two years of his contract with the San Francisco 49ers by a Feb. 21 deadline.

The 49ers then traded Owens to Baltimore for a second-round pick.

The case, filed on Owens' behalf by the NFL Players Association, will be heard by Stephen Burbank of the University of Pennsylvania Law School, who was selected jointly by the league and the NFLPA early last year to arbitrate such contract disputes.

Burbank will hear the case by conference call, and has informed the NFL he will announce the decision Sunday.

Owens' case will be argued by Richard Berthelsen, the union's general counsel and Jeffrey Kessler, their primary outside lawyer. Gregg Levy, the NFL's chief litigator, will argue the league's case.