Terrell Owens tells critic to 'kick rocks' after 2018 Hall of Fame election
The wide receiver fired a post-election shot at a journalist who told him to be a good teammate
The Pro Football Hall of Fame surprised everyone and opened its doors to Terrell Owens on Saturday night, enshrining the controversial wide receiver along with fellow late-'90s superstar Randy Moss.
Owens should have been elected to Canton two years ago, but his behavior towards teammates and the media kept him out; Owens was perceived as a selfish jerk whose actions created disruption amongst his teammates and inside his locker rooms.
With Owens, nothing is ever easy and it wasn't simple when he got in -- at least one long-time critic of Owens, Jason Whitlock of FOX Sports, decided to pay the receiver a bunch of what felt like backhanded compliments in a lengthy tweet.
Congrats, man. Yes, I wasn't a supporter but I sincerely hope this brings you joy, peace and a new level of respect. You were a tremendous football player. Be a good teammate to your fellow HOFers. Congrats. https://t.co/HcfIGzggb9
— Jason Whitlock (@WhitlockJason) February 3, 2018
Owens clearly felt that way too, because he had a simple response.
Kick Rocks.
— Terrell Owens (@terrellowens) February 3, 2018
The response to Owens's tweet was divided and pretty predictable.
Many people saluted the wide receiver for firing a shot back at a critic, especially when that critic decided to fire a shot at Owens on the day he was finally elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame, an honor that, based simply on his statistics, should have occurred two years ago. Owens was forced to wait on enshrinement because he was a jerk, plain and simple.
Many other people told Owens he wasn't handling things in the way a Hall of Famer probably should. And those people aren't wrong: Owens could have taken the high road here and simply not responded to Whitlock and/or given Whitlock the coverage.
But that wouldn't be very Terrell Owens of him. His speech before the season is going to be appointment television, as there is a very good chance Owens decides to uncork on his critics and the Hall of Fame process.
















