Tale of the tantrums

Terrell Owens’ sharp tongue and strange theatrics have often gotten him into trouble. Here’s how some of the tantrums played out, while he was with the San Francisco 49ers and Philadelphia Eagles:

2000

* Sept. 24: Owens celebrates a pair of touchdowns in a 41-24 win over the host Dallas Cowboys by running to the star logo at midfield and posing. San Francisco coach Steve Mariucci suspends him for a week. “I was praying to God. That was no act of taunting,” Owens says.

* Oct. 22: Owens accuses his 49er teammates of quitting following a 34-16 loss to the Carolina Panthers. “I think the whole team just gave up, man,” Owens said. He apologizes to his teammates the next day.

2001

* Oct. 31: Owens lashes out at Mariucci for his play calling, in particular his refusal to run up the score on opponents. “I think it’s funny, but ... his buddy system with all the coaches around the league, I think he tries to spare them sometimes,” Owens says. 2002

* Jan. 13: Owens complains about his role in the offense following a 25-15 playoff loss to the Packers. “I want to be the go-to guy on this team,” Owens says. “But the play calling doesn’t always involve me. I get lost in the offense.”

* May 3: Owens rankles team officials for risking injury when he plays his first game for the Adirondack Wildcats of the U.S. Basketball League.

* Sept. 22: Owens criticizes Mariucci for having quarterback Jeff Garcia kneel down at the Washington 16 at the end of a 20-10 win over the Redskins rather than trying to score again. “We have no killer instinct, period,” Owens says.

* Oct. 14: Owens celebrates a touchdown catch on Monday Night Football by pulling a marker from his sock and autographing the ball. Owens tosses the ball into the stands to Greg Eastman, his financial consultant and an advisor to Shawn Springs, the player who was covering him on the play.

* Dec. 15: Owens celebrates a touchdown catch in a 20-14 loss to Green Bay by taking pompoms from a cheerleader and dancing behind the end zone.

2003

* Jan. 12: Just before halftime of a 31-6 playoff loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Owens screams at the 49ers’ sideline and slaps his head in disbelief when Mariucci elects to run out the clock rather than try to cut into a 28-6 halftime deficit.

* Sept. 21: Owens throws a sideline tantrum directed at offensive coordinator Greg Knapp and is critical of new coach Dennis Erickson following a 13-12 loss to the Cleveland Browns.

* Sept. 28: Owens storms off the field when Kevan Barlow was stuffed for a 1-yard loss on fourth-and-1 during a 35-7 loss to Minnesota.

2004

* Aug. 13: An interview with Playboy hits newsstands in which Owens was asked if he thinks Jeff Garcia, his quarterback with the 49ers, is gay. Owens responds: “Like my boy tells me: If it looks like a rat and smells like a rat, by golly, it is a rat.”

* Oct. 31: Now with the Eagles, Owens mocks Baltimore linebacker Ray Lewis during an end zone celebration.

* Nov. 7: Cameras follow Owens as he yells at McNabb on the sideline during a 27-3 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers.

* Nov. 15: Owens draws criticism for a Monday Night Football promo in which actress Nicollette Sheridan -- a star of ABC’s “Desperate Housewives” dressed only in a towel -- asks Owens to skip the game then drops the towel and jumps into his arms.

2005

* April: In an interview with ESPN.com, Owens says he “wasn’t the guy who got tired in the Super Bowl,” a comment believed by many to be about McNabb’s struggles during the end of the game.

* Aug. 10: After a shouting match with Reid during training camp, Owens is sent home for a week. A circus ensues as he works out in his driveway -- doing crunches and lifting weights for TV cameras and reporters.

* Nov. 3: In an interview aired on ESPN, Owens says the team would be better off with the Packers’ Brett Favre starting at quarterback instead of the injured Donovan McNabb and blasts the Eagles for not marking his 100th touchdown catch.