T.O. & The “Cock-Blocking” Owner

June 9, 2008 at 7:55 am | Article by Paul Hickey |

The Cowboys recent move to extend the contract of 35 year old wide receiver Terrell Owens set into effect a chain of events that gave me the idea for blogging about this subject. Regarding the headline, you probably thought I was referring to Cowboys owner Jerry Jones when you read “cock-blocking” owner, however, I was not. Owens’ signing not only gave me a new outlook on his dynasty fantasy value, but it reiterated a trend that is likely happening in most long-term fantasy leagues around the country.

Without question, the 35 year old Terrell Owens was entering the 2008 season as one of the best seasonal wide receivers in fantasy football. He’s averaged 83 catches for more than 1,200 yards and 14 TDs in his two seasons in Dallas, and there was never any reason to expect that he’d perform any differently in 2008. However, there was some doubt prior to his recent contract extension, as to how long he’d actually be able to continue playing at such a high level. This doubt had caused many dynasty owners - including myself - to knock T.O. down the pile a bit in their long-term assessment of him. The three-year extension made us re-think that assessment though, and we’ve since bumped him up in our dynasty rankings, due to the fact that if Jerry Jones is confident enough to invest in him for another three seasons, and calls him “uniquely physically fit” and implies that he could play at a high level into his forties, than we really have no reason to believe otherwise. Especially if you take a look around the league at guys like 36 year old Joey Galloway, 35 year old Marvin Harrison and 33 year old Donald Driver. Jimmy Smith played until he was 37, and Jerry Rice played into his forties. The wide receiver position is very different from the running back position in that respect. After all, the very definition of a “dynasty stud” is someone who projects to play at a high level for the next two or more years, or someone who can develop into a stud within the next two to three years. All T.O. has to do is maintain, and we think he will.

So, all that is to say that when I heard the news about T.O.’s signing, and finished my quick re-evaluation of his dynasty value, I called the owner in my dynasty league who I know has been looking to deal him for some younger talent, and started making offers. As I was nearing a potential deal, the owner I was dealing with called around the league to get other opinions (standard procedure for this league). Unfortunately, I was then “cock-blocked,” and you all know what I mean by that phrase. While seeking advice, another owner in the league said - “why do you even want to trade T.O.?” I heard about the conversation, and realized that this same guy does this every single freaking time. He can’t just let things run their course. He has to weigh in on every single freaking trade both prior to when it happens and after it happens. While it makes things really fun on one hand, it’s also really annoying on the other - especially when things that would of happened, don’t happen because of his comments.

I’m curious to know if any of you have any “cock-blocking” owners in your league. If so, we may have some suggestions on how to deal with them.

In the meantime…

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