Owens asked not to come back for a week

ESPN's Sal Paolantonio reported Reid told Owens to leave after Owens "dropped an expletive" on him during a heated exchange about the wide receiver's practice session that was conducted apart from the team. Owens then left for his Moorestown, N.J., home where media members found him later Wednesday.

"I got sent home until Wednesday for whatever reason," Owens
told Comcast SportsNet for a TV interview from his front lawn. "It
was just a difference of opinion. I was defending myself."

Comcast SportsNet reported the disagreement occurred during a
team meeting. Owens then got his belongings and cleared out of
training camp at Lehigh University.

"T.O. was asked to leave by Andy Reid," Owens' publicist Kim Etheredge said. "I
don't think that it was heated, it was a difference of opinion. I
don't know if there was an argument."

Owens did not say what the argument was about.

"If the truth needs to be told, then that's what I'll do,"
Owens said. "If he [Reid] wants to be a man about it and have
me really go on the air and really tell the people what happened,
then I can. It was a difference of opinion."

The Eagles responded with a brief statement:

"Terrell Owens has been sent home from training camp due to
undisclosed team issues. He is expected to return to the team on
Wednesday, August 17th."

Owens' agent Drew Rosenhaus said: "Basically, the coach told him he should take a
rest and get some rehab and [Reid] would get back to him in a few
days."

Owens is unhappy the Eagles have refused to redo his contract as
he enters the second season of a seven-year, $48.97 million deal.
He hired Rosenhaus and threatened to skip camp completely. Instead,
Owens reported, then injured his groin last Thursday.

He was day to day and the injury wasn't considered serious, but
he missed practice Wednesday for the fifth time in six days.

Owens worked out with the team's assistant trainer for about 20
minutes on a separate playing field from his teammates, catching
balls from a machine and doing some light running. He did not speak
to reporters or acknowledge the fans who chanted his name.

Owens also skipped a scheduled autograph session with the rest
of the Eagles' receivers after practice.

"He was unable to attend because he was injured," Etheredge
said.

Owens said the fans have been great, but he didn't sign
autographs at the tent because he was rehabbing his groin. He also
said he was having fun at camp, even if it didn't look that way.

Since arriving at camp Owens has been distant on the field with
his teammates. After signing autographs and slapping hands with
fans on a nearly daily basis at last year's camp, Owens has jogged
on and off the practice field without much acknowledgment of their
chants and screams of support.

"Just because I don't talk to everybody, that's up to me,"
Owens said. "Everybody needs to understand the situation is all
business, it's nothing personal. The situation is between me and
management. They know what's going on.

"I think some people are kind of ticked off because I haven't
really said much. They don't pay me to go in there and talk to
everybody and be friendly to everybody. They paid me to play and
they paid me to perform. That's what I've been going in there and
doing."

The Eagles had a special teams practice Wednesday afternoon and
Owens was not required to attend.

Last season, Owens had 77 receptions for 1,200 yards and a
franchise-record 14 touchdowns before severely injuring his ankle
late in the season. He missed the final two regular-season games
and the first two playoff games before returning for the Super
Bowl, in which he had nine receptions for 122 yards.

While Owens has been an off-field distraction, the Eagles sorely
need his production. Todd Pinkston is on injured reserve and out
for the season with a torn Achilles' tendon, and the rest of the
wide receivers -- Greg Lewis, Billy McMullen, and Reggie Brown -- are
young and inexperienced.

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.