OPINION

By Dennis Dillon

updated 8:01 p.m. ET June 10, 2008

It had been so long since we'd heard from Terrell Owens that I thought he might have left the country, climbed a mountain in Tibet and was sitting at the feet of some spiritual guru. Well, we know that didn't happen.

T.O.'s name popped back into the news yesterday. Not surprisingly, there was a bit of controversy attached to it.

Owens, who says he never has had a positive test for a substance of any kind during his 12-year NFL career, has been placed in the league's "reasonable cause" drug testing program because of a communications screw-up.

That's right, folks. In this high-tech age of cell phones, e-mails and text messaging, T.O. missed a call recently to set up a random test, which is league policy for all players. As a result, the Dallas Cowboys wide receiver will pay a needless price.

"I'm not really worried about anything," Owens said. "It's not a big deal. Anything I do is going to grab headlines. I have nothing to hide. I've made a statement and that's it. It's basically a dead issue."

Well, no it's not. Under league rules, Owens now can be randomly tested for performance enhancers up to 24 times annually. And those screenings could be required to continue for the rest of his playing career.

I don't know about you, but I wouldn't want somebody coming around 24 times a year, asking for samples from me.

Coincidentally, on the same day last week when he received a contract extension from the Cowboys worth $12.9 million in guaranteed money, Owens met with NFL officials in New York about the drug-testing issue. Although the league warned Owens he risks a suspension if administrators run into a similar problem trying to reach him in the future, it decided not to fine or suspend him because it felt he had a credible explanation for missing the random test.

Here's the explanation: He never received the call.

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Apparently, the primary phone number Owens provided was that of his agent, Drew Rosenhaus. The alternate phone number was to a cell phone that had a mail box that was full. Owens claims his phone did not show any record of missed calls.

So who's to blame for this ridiculous turn of events? Is it Rosenhaus, for not getting a message to Owens? Is it Owens, for not cleaning out his cell phone's message box? Is it T.O.'s cell phone provider?

Guess it doesn't really matter where you point the finger. After all, as Owens said, it's not a big deal.

I'm wondering if he'll still be feeling that way around the 10th or 12th time someone hands him a cup.

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