Posted by Teddy Panos, Sun Staff

Terrell Owens addressed the media at 3:35pm and denied attempting suicide. He thanked god for allowing him to be there (alive at the presser) and apologized to the Cowboys organization for the distraction.

When pressed as to why he said “yes� when police asked if he tried to harm himself, Owens claimed he wasn’t really in a frame of mind to be aware what was going on around him and that his recollection of events is fuzzy. T.O. categorically denied being depressed and said he caught passes in practice Wednesday and intends to play football this Sunday.

Kim Ethridge, Owens’ publicist and the woman who called 911, then took the podium to dispute facts in the police report. She denied telling police the receiver was depressed. Then she claimed this was a case of people “taking advantage of� Owens. “If it were anyone else, it wouldn’t be a big deal.� When pressed on that statement, she appeared to backpedal, got flustered and walked off the podium shortly thereafter.

T.O. returned to thank Dallas fire and rescue, along with family, friends and former teammates for reaching out to him. His final remark was “I should be ready to practice tomorrow.� And with that, the podium was empty

Without having heard from authorities responding to the emergency call, I don’t know quite what to make of all this. The initial reaction is to call it an accident followed by a misunderstanding in all the confusion. If Owens really did try to commit suicide, only to respond the way he did today and look as physically stable and coherent as he did at the press conference, it points to an individual more troubled than we thought.

There are a lot of rumblings about people in San Francisco and Philadelphia not being at all surprised that Owens would attempt suicide. Some reports even have those teams approaching him about getting help. I usually say “where there’s smoke there’s fire,� but T.O. did not appear to me like a guy who attempted suicide last night.

Was this incident an accident or suicide attempt? Was it a cry for attention or a cry for help? Either way, T.O. better be sincere in his apologies or he’s not going to like the reaction he gets from his coach. Bill Parcells will respond with compassion if he thinks Owens is trying to seek help (he’s done it before with Lawrence Taylor).

But if Parcells perceives this as just another act in the T.O. circus, look out. The long-anticipated clash between the two giant egos could be one for the ages, making today’s game of he said/she said look like child’s play.

What’s your opinion? Did T.O. attempt suicide? Who’s telling the truth in this story? Should he be allowed to play or should he have to undergo some kind of mental evaluation before returning to the field?