A good ringleader of a three-ring circus needs to set the stage and then stay out of the way.
Cowboys coach Bill Parcells is doing a masterful job of that with the Terrell Owens circus. Naturally, because the subject involves T.O., every analyst becomes a psychoanalyst. T.O. presents plenty of material. The wide receiver is open and honest with his thoughts, even if it means stepping on a teammate or a coach as easily as he steps over a prone defender.
Whether Parcells liked the Owens signing isn't really known. Parcells only does press conferences, so it's hard for the national or local press in Dallas to crack the inner circle to determine his true opinion. But because Parcells usually doesn't duck questions at a press conference, he gives plenty of fodder for analyzing his relationship with Owens.
For one, Parcells doesn't mention Owens by name. He either says "he" or "the player." That's smart. At the Eagles' first press conference with Owens after he signed in 2004, coach Andy Reid called him "Terr-ELL" (not "TERR-ell"). Owens was bold enough to reach around Reid's back and correct him before the flashing camera lights.
A surprised Reid retorted that he would just call him "T.O." Parcells doesn't have time to worry about mispronouncing Owens' name.
Parcells is handling Owens at a distance, and that is wise. A head coach has to play to a family of 53 players, not just one. Owens came to the Cowboys with a history of throwing a head coach or a quarterback under the bus when things don't go his way.
By staying at a distance, Parcells can make Owens' antics less of a distraction. Parcells was confident that Owens' hospitalization last week wouldn't be a distraction -- and it wasn't. That was apparent after Dallas' 45-14 victory over Tennessee on Sunday. To some extent, it illustrates how the Cowboys are constructed.
Owens isn't the team's main focus. No matter how talented he is, Owens probably won't win the complete trust of quarterback Drew Bledsoe the way Terry Glenn has. Glenn and Bledsoe have played together for eight seasons. The Cowboys' offense isn't built around Owens.
"I try to coach him like I would coach anybody else, that's the way I describe it," Parcells said Wednesday about the way he's handling T.O.
In other words, Parcells is doing his best to fit a superstar into a team concept. So far, it's working.
Parcells also loves to throw to tight ends, and so does Bledsoe. As far as the Cowboys' scheme, Jason Witten might be more important than Owens because Parcells has a history of getting 70 to 90 passes to tight ends each season.
But don't minimize Owens' value. He is so good that he's very difficult to cover one-on-one. Defenses have to account for him. That's opening up more single coverage for Glenn and for Witten.
For Parcells, keeping his distance from Owens gives the coach the luxury of judging whether T.O. has crossed the line or still deserves his support. Parcells can go to his team and say something like: Guys, I've tried, but I can't get this player to fit in.
So far, as strange as the Owens' saga has been, he has fit in. Bledsoe likes him. That's genuine.
When Parcells needed to get Owens back from his hamstring injury during training camp, word leaked out that Owens missed a meeting and a rehab session and was being fined. However that story was leaked, it had an effect. Owens came back from the hamstring injury for a while.
Whether you credit Parcells or Owens, the receiver came back from hand surgery in less than two weeks and didn't miss a game despite a bad break of his index finger.
Because the strategy is working, Parcells will keep his distance with "the player."
Last week's incident in which Owens was hospitalized for what police have ruled an "accidental overdose" gave more insight into the seemingly distant relationship between the troubled superstar and the coach. At Parcells' normal Wednesday press conference, the coach said he hadn't spoken to Owens and knew little about what happened.
You have to believe him, but you also have to examine why Parcells didn't know anything. You have to figure that Parcells didn't want to know many details; otherwise, he would have to sit through 30 minutes of questions and decide what to say and what not to reveal. Instead, by not knowing, he could truthfully not answer any of the questions.
If Parcells had a close relationship with Owens, there's a good chance he would have rushed to the hospital on Tuesday night. Steelers coach Bill Cowher ended a vacation in North Carolina to be by Ben Roethlisberger's side the evening of the quarterback's motorcycle accident. Cowher and Roethlisberger are close. His presence illustrated their relationship.
On Sunday, following Dallas' victory over the Titans, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said he knew an hour after Owens was taken to the hospital that he was going to be fine. No doubt, that information was relayed to Parcells, giving him the choice of going to the hospital or waiting to see Owens the next day.
Certainly, Parcells is a caring enough person that he would have been at the hospital if it was certain Owens was in a life-threatening situation. No coach in football is as open about his health as Parcells. Remember, he retired from coaching because of health concerns.
Like most coaches, Parcells keeps in touch with his former players and is always asking about their health and their families. He cares.
But understand that NFL head coaches know just about everything, and information is more available than ever before. A head coach is a magnet for information. From team security to monitoring the Internet, teams do a good job of keeping track of what's going on with their players.
As for Parcells, he doesn't have to go to far to find out what T.O. is involved with. On Owens' plus side, he's not an off-the-field worry in terms of partying or getting in trouble. Owens doesn't drink or smoke and has never been involved in a club or lounge incident.
Off the field, Owens keeps a good portion of his life private. But Owens is also all about promoting himself so he's always in front of the cameras, and we know what can happen then.
Coaches like Parcells know how to deal with stars like T.O. Parcells figured out a strategy to make the best of the Owens' acquisition. The circus came to town once Owens arrived. So far, Parcells has made things work in the big top.
John Clayton is a senior writer for ESPN.com.
