A Fan Comment On DMN Creates A Question

[TwoDeep3]

Reading Sturm's recent article in the Dallas Morning News about the game against the Giants, a fan responded with an interesting opinion about Romo.

whartonWiser: It seems Romo is helped by his back injury limitations. He knows he can't get adventurous and thus has to look for receivers rather than a path to run. I'm sure there are more called running plays this season but Tony knows leaving the running to others is his best bet.

I think he made a point he was not trying to make, because he thinks Romo has looked to run in the past.

But, do you think Romo may have adapted to the improved line play, aided by his injury which causes him to be less active in moving around in the backfield?

I am not trying to take anything away from Romo. Fact is this addresses his mental ability to recognize peril and how to positively move to avoid it. And how his changing situation with pass protection offers him a confidence it will hold long enough for him to find what he feels is a safe pass.

I made mention last night I see something in him which indicates he is under more control. His game winning TD showed he pumped, pulled it down, then took two steps up as the line moved people around him so he could find Dez.

So, is this just Romo's acumen, or does his injury come into play here? Meaning that he discovered through his lack of motion he can stand in and simply move around modestly and have the time to succeed.

I find this interesting.

 

[Corso]

I believe he's adhering to the gameplan that he, Linehan, Callahan and Garretthan agreed to during the week leading up to the game.

I could be wrong though...

 

[TwoDeep3]

I believe he's adhering to the gameplan that he, Linehan, Callahan and Garretthan agreed to during the week leading up to the game.

I could be wrong though...

I may not have articulated this well. I mean on passing plays he now seems under less duress as things move around him, which manifests in his patience in the pocket instead of sprinting out.

Sorry, I did not mean the running game with Murray.

 

[ABQCOWBOY]

I think there is more emphasis on running the ball and I think the two times we have gotten away from that, the results have been telling. I think Tony has recognized that and I hope he's learned from it. I also think this line is just getting better and Tony is starting to trust it a little more. Heck, I've never seen Tony stand in for 7 or 8 seconds in the pocket before, much less on successive plays.

 

[Crown Royal]

I think there is more emphasis on running the ball and I think the two times we have gotten away from that, the results have been telling. I think Tony has recognized that and I hope he's learned from it. I also think this line is just getting better and Tony is starting to trust it a little more. Heck, I've never seen Tony stand in for 7 or 8 seconds in the pocket before, much less on successive plays.

Usually at about 4 seconds he either hears the words of Tuna saying "get rid of the ball Romo" or his back starts tingling hearing footsteps and he starts jitter bugging.

I've seen him do that magical pirouette with zero pressure before.

 

[TwoDeep3]

He appears to be more confident in the pocket. No surprise since this OL is magnificent.

But there is something else about Tony this season which has hin standing in longere and being more precise in his decision making about targets.

Not certain it's anything that can be quantified. Maybe just perception only.

 

[Corso]

I may not have articulated this well. I mean on passing plays he now seems under less duress as things move around him, which manifests in his patience in the pocket instead of sprinting out.

Sorry, I did not mean the running game with Murray.

You see it in all sports with savvy, intelligent players as they age and injuries build up- they evolve themselves as players.
From the NFL to the NBA and all in-between and I think we see this from Romo.

He's not a dumb guy and I believe we are witnessing his natural evolution as he ages and the reason he's able to do this is because the team has built an O-line around him to allow this.
If his line was still like it was 2 years ago- we wouldn't be watching him this week, or last week or even the week before and it would have ruined the tail-end of his career.

I credit Hoss Jones for giving him a line to allow him to age gracefully instead of tragically and show his maturity as a QB instead of a guy who has to run around like a panicked chicken with it's head about to be chopped off, looking like a fool. Then injured.

 

[TwoDeep3]

You see it in all sports with savvy, intelligent players as they age and injuries build up- they evolve themselves as players.
From the NFL to the NBA and all in-between and I think we see this from Romo.

He's not a dumb guy and I believe we are witnessing his natural evolution as he ages and the reason he's able to do this is because the team has built an O-line around him to allow this.
If his line was still like it was 2 years ago- we wouldn't be watching him this week, or last week or even the week before and it would have ruined the tail-end of his career.

I credit Hoss Jones for giving him a line to allow him to age gracefully instead of tragically and show his maturity as a QB instead of a guy who has to run around like a panicked chicken with it's head about to be chopped off, looking like a fool. Then injured.

I hadn't considered that, Corso. I sure see Dirk refining his game as he ages. Good call.

 

[5Stars]

I think there is more emphasis on running the ball and I think the two times we have gotten away from that, the results have been telling. I think Tony has recognized that and I hope he's learned from it. I also think this line is just getting better and Tony is starting to trust it a little more. Heck, I've never seen Tony stand in for 7 or 8 seconds in the pocket before, much less on successive plays.

QFT

This is what I think also. Romo has good vision. He not only looks down field, but he scans his protection around him at the same time. It's the oline that is helping him.

When he had a bad oline, that is when he needed to get the hell out of Dodge.

 

[tyke1doe]

I don't think the back injury has anything to do with Tony not running more. He has been trying to be more patient in the pocket for a few years.
Heck, I remember Cowboys fans during the game thread pleading with Romo to run more when openings are available, and he would just wait until someone got open.
I do think, however, because we are running the ball more and favoring the run game, Romo feels more comfortable staying in the pocket unless he absolutely has to run.
But I like this more mature (AND DANGEROUS) Romo.

 

[percyhoward]

These constant subtle slides in the pocket are supposed to keep him from being a stationary target, I think. He actually seems to be moving more now, but improvising less.

 

[TwoDeep3]

These constant subtle slides in the pocket are supposed to keep him from being a stationary target, I think. He actually seems to be moving more now, but improvising less.

Thanks Percy, that is what I think I was getting at. His slides are more purposeful and not an all-out jailbreak.

 

[Crown Royal]

These constant subtle slides in the pocket are supposed to keep him from being a stationary target, I think. He actually seems to be moving more now, but improvising less.

He had footwork issues between 10-12 I think. Always having a sieve in front of him affected that. Hes back to what he used to do back in the early part of his career.

 

[Corso]

I hadn't considered that, Corso. I sure see Dirk refining his game as he ages. Good call.

As a long-time Spurs fan- I respect the heck out of Dirk and he and Duncan have followed a very similar career both in their performance and business and their teams success being a direct result of their mere presence and what they do for their teams on multiple fronts.
It's not a coincidence their longevity has been remarkable and they both did it the same way: they evolved their game to compensate for age and it's happening with Romo too.

As with those two legendary players- I expect no less from Romo.
I would have been shocked if it wasn't happening. Not with the line performing the way it is now.

I look forward to more of this and things getting even better for a few good more years barring catastrophic injuries and this unit sticking together on offense.
This team just has to get more talent on the defense while maintaining continuity on offense.

Then we will be watching a yearly contender until Romo retires and we go through another era of uncertainty.
Hopefully the Jones are going to get proactive on that sooner rather than... how they did the last time.

 

[DandyDon1722]

Tony is in that rare (and short lived) zone where he still has the skill set and the game has now slowed down for him. Steve Young has often said he had a three year window when he hit this combination and everything came so easy to him, then he started losing his physical tools.

 

[kramskoi]

I may not have articulated this well. I mean on passing plays he now seems under less duress as things move around him, which manifests in his patience in the pocket instead of sprinting out.

Sorry, I did not mean the running game with Murray.

It may simply be an increasing level of trust regarding the big men up front. Crikey! If they are going to give him time like they did on that GWD then I can understand the calm and resolve he is displaying. He simply might not know how to act with so much time to throw!

 

[TwoDeep3]

As a long-time Spurs fan- I respect the heck out of Dirk and he and Duncan have followed a very similar career both in their performance and business and their teams success being a direct result of their mere presence and what they do for their teams on multiple fronts.
It's not a coincidence their longevity has been remarkable and they both did it the same way: they evolved their game to compensate for age and it's happening with Romo too.

As with those two legendary players- I expect no less from Romo.
I would have been shocked if it wasn't happening. Not with the line performing the way it is now.

I look forward to more of this and things getting even better for a few good more years barring catastrophic injuries and this unit sticking together on offense.
This team just has to get more talent on the defense while maintaining continuity on offense.

Then we will be watching a yearly contender until Romo retires and we go through another era of uncertainty.
Hopefully the Jones are going to get proactive on that sooner rather than... how they did the last time.

I watched a video blurb on Gasol and it was projected that he would join the Spurs this next year when Duncan is ready to retire.

 

[fifaguy]

I call it wisdom (and maturity)...

 

[speedkilz88]

He has a running game to lean on and the 3 interior OL are giving him a consistent pocket to step up into.

 

[casmith07]

Romo's able to not have to throw the ball 40 times a game because we have an offensive line that can actually run the ball and keep the defense honest.

He's also probably able to through it 40 times and have a clean jersey because of that same offensive line.

Bottom line, all quarterbacks need a good supporting cast. It's a ******* team game.