He's regarded as 'The King', but even Wayne Carey couldn't help but be impressed by one of the NFL's all-time greats.

The North Melbourne champion rubbed shoulders with legendary wide receiver Terrell Owens ahead of a special charity match at Arden Street.

Remembered for his outstanding speed and power, Carey said Owens could've easily made it as an AFL footballer.

“(Owens is) the second greatest of all time behind Jerry Rice as a wide receiver so I’m in pretty good company here, he’s definitely one of the greats,” Carey told NMFC.com.au on Friday.

“He’s a perfect prototype for a centre half-forward.

“Imagine going to pick up a young Terrell Owens when he’s five or six (years old), bringing him to Australia and saying, ‘Learn our game’. I think it’d be a whole different game.”

PRESS PLAY above to watch the Carey/Owens interview | YouTube

Owens played 15 seasons in the NFL and is widely considered one of the greatest wide receivers to have ever played the game.

While the 41-year-old said he would've loved to have had a "crack" at AFL, he admitted the amount of running involved would've challenged him, especially after attending the 2014 Grand Final.

“In terms of the conditioning, I’m not a long distance type of guy so I probably would’ve been subbed in and out,” he said with a laugh.

“I saw a lot of running so you definitely have to have your conditioning up.

“Once you know the rules, you really get into it more. It’s kind of hard being an athlete trying to grasp the concept of another sport.

“If I knew what was really going on, I probably would’ve been jumping up and down like everybody else."

Owens is well known for his exuberant celebrations after scoring touchdowns and said he would've been a “trendsetter” in the AFL.

“You think about the stadium (and) you think about the number of people that come out to watch … so I would’ve definitely liked to have gotten the fans involved,” he said.

“I definitely would’ve been somewhat of a showman but it would’ve been all in good fun.”

Carey and Owens will have the opportunity to go toe-to-toe in a Celebrity Charity Bowl, created to raise funds for the Starlight Children’s Foundation.

Brendan Fevola and Jonathan Brown will also participate, along with David King, Corey McKernan, Nick Maxwell, Mat McBriar, Wendall Sailor and the gridiron girls from the Melbourne Maidens.

The Celebrity Charity Bowl Playoff, sponsored by www.melbourne, begins at 1pm at Arden Street Oval on Sunday and entry is via a gold coin donation.

“We’re doing this for the Starlight Foundation. That’s what it’s all about, it’s for the kids,” Owens said.

“We’re going to have a lot of fun and hopefully we can raise a lot of money.”