ATLANTA – Terrell Owens could face a severe fine by the NFL after Atlanta cornerback DeAngelo Hall said the Cowboys receiver spit in his face in the first quarter.
"He had a couple of nice catches, and you expect that, he's a great player," said Hall, who covered Owens most of the night. "Right before the first punt though, we kind of got into each other's faces, talking back and forth, and I lost all respect for him when he spit in my face."
Owens said he may have accidentally spit in Hall's face while he was yelling at him.
"He was so close," Owens said to a reporter after the game.
On the NFL Network, Owens apologized.
"I got frustrated, and I apologized for that," he said of spitting. "It was a situation where he kept bugging me and getting in my face. He just kept getting in my face."
There was no penalty on the play.
For the night, Owens finished with five catches for 69 yards and two touchdowns.
Almost lost in the incident was the fact he will have to undergo surgery on his right ring finger after the season to repair a torn tendon.
Owens said he tore the tendon a month ago and decided three weeks ago against having the surgery.
Owens would have been lost for the season if he'd had the surgery. Owens elected to play with the finger taped up.
"That was a big decision, a real decision, nothing iffy about it," owner/general manager Jerry Jones said. "Every expert we had said if he never got it fixed, he would never use it again, in terms of bending the end of the finger. He stayed with the team."
For the last few weeks, Owens has practiced and played with the finger taped. And during his birthday party on Dec. 4, Owens partied with his finger taped.
E-mail cwatkins@dallasnews.com
| T.O.'S TOUCHDOWNS |
| For the sixth time in his career, Terrell Owens has caught at least 10 touchdown passes in a season, and he became the first Cowboy to do so since Michael Irvin in 1995: |
| TDs | Player | Year |
| 14 | Frank Clarke | 1962 |
| 13 | Bob Hayes | 1966 |
| 12 | Bob Hayes | 1965 |
| 12 | Lance Rentzel | 1969 |
| 11 | Terrell Owens | 2006 |
| 10 | Frank Clarke | 1963 |
| 10 | Bob Hayes | 1967 |
| 10 | Bob Hayes | 1968 |
| 10 | Bob Hayes | 1970 |
| 10 | Tony Hill | 1979 |
| 10 | Michael Irvin | 1995 |
