If you had it to do all over with Romo and Dak in 2016

[Motorola]

Going back to 2016.

Even though Romo probably would have crumbled on the next sack he took, a part of me will always wonder what would have happened if Romo had been given a chance to gain his starting job back during the second half of the 2016 season.

Not saying that there was a chance in hell of that ever happening, but I do believe that if Romo had gotten the opportunity and if he could somehow have stayed healthy for the rest of the season, I do somehow believe he would have taken the Cowboys to the SB.

Something about that one series drive he had against the Eagles that made it look too easy. He looked like he was playing golf.

Knowing now that Dak was going to become just an above average QB, any regrets for not giving Romo one last shot?

That decision - and the circumstances surrounding it - will continue to be one of the most debated topics among fans and sports media in Cowboys history.

 

[DFWJC]

Romo was not going to beat Rodgers with our defense. Let it go. The same problem we had in 2014 with the Dez catch game. We would have never stopped Rodgers.

Sure he could. We'll never know though.

That Green Bay pass defense was the worst Dallas has faced in the playoffs in 30 years. They were giving up 30 and even 40 points on what seemed like a regular basis.
And we had them at home.

 

[Cowboy4ever]

There was no downside to play Romo. It was a huge mistake not to play Romo. Romo gave us by far the best chance to go deep into the playoffs. We had seen enough of Dak to know he was going to be the future (for better or worse) but he was a rookie.

If they had played Romo these are the outcomes:

1. Romo gets hurts again - no question it would time to retire and move on with no questions asked.
2. Romo plays poorly - sit him down and turn the team over to Dak then
3. Romo plays well - stays healthy for the remaining of the year and plays well - increased trade value at the end of the year
4. Keep Romo on the bench - no team knows if he can play again which kills any type of trade value. We do not have a realistic shot at moving to SB with a Rookie QB. So this is the path we elected.

 

[DonaldM]

Yea lol Romo was done. Not his brain but physically..

 

[phildadon86]

Unless someone can go back in time to 2016 and stop Byron Jones from losing Jared Cook. It doesn’t matter who starts at QB.

 

[Hardline]

It did not matter because Romo was a hit away from IR every play in every game.

Romo was a much better quarterback than he will ever get credit for being, but at that point his body was just no longer reliable enough to count on him for a full season.

Every player is one hit away from IR on every play. Saying Romo would've gotten hurt on one hit is pure speculation.

 

[ghst187]

Romo was broken. His body had fallen apart from years of the physical abuse that comes from the position. For his health and his future alone it was time to move on.

ironically he came into the league after Brady and left well before. Brady hasn’t had superior OLs, he just got rid of the ball quicker. Of course, his extended plays were what made him must watch.

 

[TheCritic]

Maybe because he was playing against scrubs in a glorified pre-season game where the other team was trying to lose for draft position, perhaps? I mean, it could be that.

That's fair. Still I would have liked to see what Romo could have accomplished with the talent they had that year.

 

[Reality]

Every player is one hit away from IR on every play. Saying Romo would've gotten hurt on one hit is pure speculation.

Romo had a history of getting hurt repeatedly which made it more likely to happen to him.

 

[Swagger]

Sure he could. We'll never know though.

That Green Bay pass defense was the worst Dallas has faced in the playoffs in 30 years. They were giving up 30 and even 40 points on what seemed like a regular basis.
And we had them at home.

Indeed and the following week the Falcons could have put 50+ points on them if they needed to.

The Cowboys lost to the Packers so of course it was the wrong decision to not play an All Pro Quarterback against the worst pass defense the Cowboys faced in 30 years. If he got injured then put Dak in. Keep it simple.

 

[Acceptablename]

Going back to 2016.

Even though Romo probably would have crumbled on the next sack he took, a part of me will always wonder what would have happened if Romo had been given a chance to gain his starting job back during the second half of the 2016 season.

Not saying that there was a chance in hell of that ever happening, but I do believe that if Romo had gotten the opportunity and if he could somehow have stayed healthy for the rest of the season, I do somehow believe he would have taken the Cowboys to the SB.

Something about that one series drive he had against the Eagles that made it look too easy. He looked like he was playing golf.

Knowing now that Dak was going to become just an above average QB, any regrets for not giving Romo one last shot?

Dak no brained/ Romo was finished

 

[TheCritic]

Romo had a history of getting hurt repeatedly which made him more likely to happen to him.

Can't argue against that. I fully understand why the Cowboys stuck with Dak. But again, with OL being elite that year, Zeke at his best, I think Romo would have sat back there picking defenses apart.

 

[Kevinicus]

Romo was broken. His body had fallen apart from years of the physical abuse that comes from the position. For his health and his future alone it was time to move on.

That's not how it works.

 

[JW82]

Are we pretending that Romo wasn’t made of glass in this hypothetical?

 

[Reality]

Can't argue against that. I fully understand why the Cowboys stuck with Dak. But again, with OL being elite that year, Zeke at his best, I think Romo would have sat back there picking defenses apart.

I do think Romo was a better quarterback at that point in his career than Dak was, but it was hard to rely on him being there all season.

 

[baltcowboy]

Sure he could. We'll never know though.

That Green Bay pass defense was the worst Dallas has faced in the playoffs in 30 years. They were giving up 30 and even 40 points on what seemed like a regular basis.
And we had them at home.

Rodgers was the better quarterback. Dak played a great game. Just don’t see how a broken down Romo could have played better then Dak. The reason why we lost the game was because Rodgers completed a 4th and 20 pass that only he could have completed.

 

[TheCritic]

Are we pretending that Romo wasn’t made of glass in this hypothetical?

Fair question. But that was an elite OL and Zeke at his best that year. I would have taken the chance and if Romo faltered again, then you put Dak back in.

 

[TheCritic]

Rodgers was the better quarterback. Dak played a great game. Just don’t see how a broken down Romo could have played better then Dak. The reason why we lost the game was because Rodgers completed a 4th and 20 pass that only he could have completed.

Remember though the Cowboys fell behind early. Maybe Romo would have helped get more early scores and change the dynamics of the game.

 

[5Stars]

Romo made the Dallas Cowboys somewhat relevant again after Troy.

He played under Coach Parcells. Romo broke his body playing for the Cowboys trying to win games for his team.

Yeah...some say if he played again that year instead of coaching Dak up he might get hurt...

JJ and Coach Garret thought they found a gem in the making and decided to let Dak lead the team, a kick azz team...running game with Dak's little friend the Zeke.

That particular year that team was strong on offense, big boys upfront, maybe Romo would not have to do circus acts to score like that when he was young...he wanted to compete...they said no. Dak took over and...here we are.

Then Romo went "Hollywood"! Coach Garret and JJ should have let Romo play as long as he could, because he would.

 

[CouchCoach]

I still wonder who made that final decision and even the feeling behind it.

I would like to think that the front office really didn't want to see Romo in a crumpled pile again on the field. That was a preseason play that put him out and he looked really slow trying to get away from that tackle. He could no longer adequately protect himself.

He wanted the chance to compete for the QB1 job back and that could have done more harm than good creating some choose sides QB controversy and the media would have been all over that. I think the happiest person that did not happen was Witten. He was also the one that helped smooth the passing of the mantle for the team.

That choose sides thing about the team? That is exactly what posters did and if they liked one they felt they had to dislike the other to the same level. Romo's time was over, Prescott's was beginning and he might not be what some want but he has been better than what they could have had. Like Lynch or Cook, just to mention two.