T.O. almost gracious in defeat

Magnanimous guy that he is, Terrell Owens sent Tony Romo a text message today, telling him that no matter what happened against the Eagles, no matter how awful the quarterback played, he would shed tears for him again, the way he did last season after Romo stumbled against the New York Giants in the playoffs.

Indeed, Romo was awful, unable to lead the talented Cowboys into the playoffs, or even into the end zone, as the Eagles humiliated them, 44-6, before a delighted crowd at Lincoln Financial Field.

"I just told him no matter what, I'm still the same guy who shed tears for him at last year's press conference, and I'd do it again because that's the type of person I am, regardless of what anybody thinks or says about me," Owens said.

For anyone expecting T.O. to point fingers at his teammates or the coach or to express resentment that his former team, the Eagles, had won what was basically a playoff game to go to the playoffs, it did not happen.

Maybe T.O. was gracious because he got his - 103 yards on six catches. Maybe he was still in shock and not in complete command of his thoughts. Whatever. He said he knew Dallas would get the best from the Eagles regardless of whether they had been knocked out of the playoffs before kickoff.

"Those guys fought and hung around all year long," Owens said. "There was a lot of adversity going on here and I know the makeup of that locker room and I know the makeup of that coach. And he had those guys ready, and everything pretty much fell in their favor, with all the teams losing for them, and they gave us a butt-whipping.

"You've got to give credit to the Eagles. They took advantage of their opportunities. They took advantage of the turnovers we committed, and basically they handed us an old-fashioned butt-whipping."

For the Cowboys, it was a shocking conclusion to a season they entered as one of the Super Bowl favorites. They have not won a playoff game since 1996 and they will not even have a chance to compete in one this season. If they are still considered America's Team, the standards in this country really have slipped considerably.

But T.O. said he is on board with whatever changes the Cowboys make during the off-season. He even offered to help the owner, Jerry Jones, to get things straightened out if Jones asks him.

Asked if the players support the coaching staff, Owens said, "I'm not sure. All I know is I want to win. I want to be put in a position to win. I think we have the pieces here to get the job done. Whatever unfolds during the off-season has my full support. If Jerry asks for any advice, I will give him my honest opinion."

But Owens kept his thoughts to himself when asked what he would change.

"I don't want to answer that right now," he said. "There were some opportunities as a team we let slip away. For myself, I know I can still play this game. We've just got to go back to the drawing board. This is a tough way to end the season with [losing] the last two games, really a shameful way to go out. We came here with our destiny in our own hands and we kind of stunk it up. I don't have all the answers. I'm here to be part of the solution."

Each time he touched the ball, Owens was heartily booed by the crowd. He smiled when asked his reaction.

"They always get on me," he said. "I know it's a lot of love-hate in those situations. When I was here, those guys were behind me 100 percent. I understand me being here and going to a rival with the Cowboys, that's enough in itself.

"But, you know, they recognize I have talent. When I was here, we had some success and we accomplished some things and probably could have accomplished a lot more, but those things didn't happen. We parted ways. I knew I was going to come in here and [Eagles fans] were going to give it to me the whole game long, and I just wanted to have fun with it. I don't let it get to me at all. I know deep down in their hearts, if there was an opportunity to get me back, they'd have me back."