NFL Hall Of Fame Legend Has A Message For Shaquille O’Neal Over FBI Badge
Why did Terrell Owens want Shaquille O’Neal to return his honorary FBI badge? The NFL legend explained his concerns over the controversial honor.
Shaquille O'Neal received an honorary FBI Special Agent badge in Virginia on September 17, but Terrell Owens believed the basketball star should have left it behind. The former NFL wide receiver questioned the timing of the honor and O'Neal's response to people who criticized it. Owens made his comments on the Get To the Point Podcast, where he said O'Neal could have accepted the recognition at another time. The exchange brought attention to a law enforcement connection that had followed Shaq for years.
Terrell Owens speaks on Shaquille O'Neal FBI badge
FBI Director Kash Patel presented O'Neal with the honorary badge and plaque during the FBI National Academy's Session 299 graduation ceremony in Quantico, Virginia. Patel called Shaq one of the best supporters of law enforcement in the country.
Owens focused on when the recognition happened. He said, “There's timing to everything. There's a time and a place for everything. Maybe you could have gotten this award some other time, but this wasn't the time to do it.” He referred to O'Neal's response to a person who had burned an old Shaq jersey to protest the honor.
Owens then took his criticism further and said O'Neal should return the badge. He later wrote on X, “Shaq, We ALL make mistakes or just have poor judgment at times, ME included. BUT…. It's not too late to give that badge back.”
The honor itself did not make O'Neal a working FBI agent. He did not complete the National Academy's standard training, so the designation remained ceremonial.
Shaquille O'Neal's law enforcement history
O'Neal's connection with law enforcement had begun long before the FBI ceremony. During his NBA career, he trained through the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Reserve Academy and became a reserve officer with the Los Angeles Port Police in 2002.
He later held reserve roles in Miami Beach, Virginia, Tempe and Doral, along with deputy positions in Georgia and Louisiana. His work later included community relations with the Henry County Sheriff's Office in Georgia.
In 2025, he became Chief of Community Relations there, a role centered on connecting the sheriff's office with local residents. The FBI honor therefore added another ceremonial title to a law enforcement history that had stretched across more than two decades.