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ksherrington@***BANNED-URL***
Published: 09 November 2014 08:26 PM
Updated: 10 November 2014 12:10 AM
Related
Consider this an apology to the Cowboys, who apparently had a jolly old time in London after all.
Whether a couple dozen of you actually broke some form of curfew is a matter of semantics, I suppose. Or, if you believe the head coach, maybe not. The point is, you had fun. Got out of the hotel. Rubbed up against history, and who knows what else.
Even got Jason Garrett to quote Churchill regarding our reporting skills. Garrett was a little bit off, which wasn’t half-bad, but the actual wording goes like this: “A lie gets halfway around the world before the truth has a chance to get its pants on.”
Great stuff. You can’t go wrong with Churchill over here. Or anywhere, really.
Frankly, given Garrett’s sterling command of the local culture, we might have conceded the curfew angle if only he’d set an earlier one Sunday for his banged-up quarterback. The final seven minutes of a blowout against a bad team seemed a trifle late.
Said Garrett, looking a little surprised, “I thought we managed that the right way.”
Probably was under that impression because, all the way across the Atlantic, the screams of Cowboys fans in Dallas and New York and Paris, Texas, couldn’t be heard.
What they’ve been led to believe is that Tony Romo has broken two transverse processes on top of a couple of back surgeries in the last couple of years. They witnessed last week what life could be like with Brandon Weeden at quarterback. Whatever else they thought of Romo before, they’re all on board the Romo bus now. He was brilliant Sunday, completing 20 of 27 for 246 yards and three touchdowns without an interception. Quarterback rating of 138.8. For the record, that’s three games out of his last six that he’s had a rating of 135 or better. He’s on a roll, and after that little skid against Washington and Arizona, it appears his team is back on track, as well.
Pretty much everyone is under the impression, however, that it won’t last without Romo. They’d like to think the head coach realizes the same. They want to know he’s doing everything possible to protect his most precious commodity.
Leaving Romo in to get thrown around a couple of times like bad luggage while banking a 24-point lead late didn’t seem like an especially good idea.
“Certainly in your head, four scores in a game, you start to think about that a little bit,” Garrett said, recognizing the point. “But at the same time, this is the NFL and teams can come back and things can turn really quickly.”
Preaching to the choir, Jason. We’ve all seen it, and shiver at the memories.
But this was also Jacksonville, now 1-9 on its way to oblivion. Blake Bortles, the rookie quarterback, had developed happy feet in the face of one of the Cowboys’ best pass rushes yet. Four sacks, a veritable bonanza.
Granted, the Cowboys couldn’t leave here without a win. But if it had really been in jeopardy with Weeden in the game, there’s no flag for going back to the first quarterback.
As it was, save for an overthrow of a wide-open Jason Witten early that cost the Cowboys a touchdown, few could have imagined how good Romo would look so soon since the back injury.
Sure, throwing the ball to Dez Bryant certainly helps. But Dez’s second touchdown, a 68-yarder, was a perfectly-placed ball, putting the Cowboys up 24-7 at the half.
Garrett wasn’t feeling it, though. Had Dan Bailey’s 48-yard field goal attempt not been swatted with 4:05 remaining in the third, he indicated he might have pulled Romo then. Or Dez or DeMarco Murray, for that matter.
But with a 24-point lead and 19 minutes still to play, it was all hands on deck.
Of course, Romo didn’t have any problem with the call, not that you’d expect he would. Whatever his faults, he’s as tough as Thursday’s beef Wellington.
Raised that way, apparently.
“I learned from a coach when I first got here about playing through stuff,” he said, smiling at the memory of Bill Parcells. “You go and play and no one cares when you step on the field.
“You gotta go do it.”
On Sunday, Garrett channeled his inner Parcells.
“He seemed fine,” he said of Romo. “Didn’t look like he had any physical restrictions.
“He really looked like himself.”
Yes, he did, rolling right to facilitate the Cowboys’ first touchdown, a 2-yarder to Witten and flitting about the pocket otherwise in typical fashion.
Doesn’t mean it was easy, though, especially when the Jags finally got to him in the second half.
“It’s always uncomfortable no matter when you get hit,” Romo said. “You don’t feel 100 percent.
“It’s uncomfortable, but it’s still manageable.”
A Toradol pill for the pain made it so, for the most part. A quicker hook from his head coach would have helped, too.
Of course, all’s well that ends well. Dallas goes into the bye week 7-3 with a relatively healthy quarterback. Still, as long as Garrett can invoke the former prime minister, let me close with a line that speaks to the spirit of the misfortune the Cowboys so blithely skated.
“Nothing in life is so exhilarating,” Churchill once said, “as to be shot at without result.”
MORE DALLAS COWBOYS COVERAGE
COLUMNISTS
Sherrington: An open letter of apology to the 7-3 Dallas Cowboys after their easy win
PHOTOS/VIDEO
Photos: See Randle's deep dive; Romo, Dez's celebrations in Cowboys' win over Jags
Photos: The scene in London for Cowboys-Jaguars (do they party like Dallas?)
See Dez Bryant’s incredible TD and shout out to LeBron James in Cowboys’ win
EXPERT ANALYSIS
George: Amid mounting off-field distractions, Dez at his best at Wembley
Moore: How Cowboys took care of business in London to avoid 'season-turning loss'
Tracking Murray: Cowboys RB falls behind Emmitt Smith's team-record pace
Cowboys trends: Offensive line returns to dominant form; special teams erratic at best
Cowboys shuffle DT spots, sack quarterback season-high four times
Bob Sturm: Show Dez the money; I would have pulled Romo sooner
5 thoughts: Romo returns, proves Cowboys are legit contender
TV/MEDIA/THE SCENE
Did or didn’t the Cowboys have trouble with curfew in days leading up to Sunday’s game?
Irvin: Fans don’t understand why Romo is risking further injury
London fans try the wave, leave early in convincing Cowboys victory
Cowboys mix up travel plans ahead of bye week
Irvin: Cowboys will play harder with Tony Romo instead of Brandon Weeden
Ex-Cowboy Johnston points out folly of keeping Romo, Murray and Dez on field late
PLAYER/COACH REACTION
Cole Beasley angrily responds via Twitter to fan who criticized him
Jaguar: We played like a college team against Cowboys
London’s Jack Crawford improvises sack celebration, calls it ‘special moment’
Joseph Randle: Playing in London was like a World Cup game
How did Cowboys think Wembley’s slick pitch held up?
Bruce Carter: Rookie Hitchens ‘the best thing since sliced bread’
Jerry Jones, Stephen Jones treated to party on Jags owner’s ‘super yacht,’ which can be rented for $1.6M per week
INJURIES
Rookie Cowboys CB Tyler Patmon injures knee, will undergo further testing
Cowboys rest LB Rolando McClain as rookie continues to shine
On Twitter: @KSherringtonDMN
Published: 09 November 2014 08:26 PM
Updated: 10 November 2014 12:10 AM
Related
- Did Cowboys have trouble with curfew in London?
- George: Amid mounting off-field distractions, Dez at his best at Wembley
- 5 thoughts: Tony Romo returns, proves Cowboys are legit contender
- Moore: How Cowboys took care of business to avoid 'season-turning loss'
- Bob Sturm: Show Dez Bryant the money; I would have pulled Romo sooner
- Irvin: Cowboys will play harder with Romo instead of Brandon Weeden
- Photos: See Randle's deep dive; Romo, Dez's celebrations in Cowboys' win
Consider this an apology to the Cowboys, who apparently had a jolly old time in London after all.
Whether a couple dozen of you actually broke some form of curfew is a matter of semantics, I suppose. Or, if you believe the head coach, maybe not. The point is, you had fun. Got out of the hotel. Rubbed up against history, and who knows what else.
Even got Jason Garrett to quote Churchill regarding our reporting skills. Garrett was a little bit off, which wasn’t half-bad, but the actual wording goes like this: “A lie gets halfway around the world before the truth has a chance to get its pants on.”
Great stuff. You can’t go wrong with Churchill over here. Or anywhere, really.
Frankly, given Garrett’s sterling command of the local culture, we might have conceded the curfew angle if only he’d set an earlier one Sunday for his banged-up quarterback. The final seven minutes of a blowout against a bad team seemed a trifle late.
Said Garrett, looking a little surprised, “I thought we managed that the right way.”
Probably was under that impression because, all the way across the Atlantic, the screams of Cowboys fans in Dallas and New York and Paris, Texas, couldn’t be heard.
What they’ve been led to believe is that Tony Romo has broken two transverse processes on top of a couple of back surgeries in the last couple of years. They witnessed last week what life could be like with Brandon Weeden at quarterback. Whatever else they thought of Romo before, they’re all on board the Romo bus now. He was brilliant Sunday, completing 20 of 27 for 246 yards and three touchdowns without an interception. Quarterback rating of 138.8. For the record, that’s three games out of his last six that he’s had a rating of 135 or better. He’s on a roll, and after that little skid against Washington and Arizona, it appears his team is back on track, as well.
Pretty much everyone is under the impression, however, that it won’t last without Romo. They’d like to think the head coach realizes the same. They want to know he’s doing everything possible to protect his most precious commodity.
Leaving Romo in to get thrown around a couple of times like bad luggage while banking a 24-point lead late didn’t seem like an especially good idea.
“Certainly in your head, four scores in a game, you start to think about that a little bit,” Garrett said, recognizing the point. “But at the same time, this is the NFL and teams can come back and things can turn really quickly.”
Preaching to the choir, Jason. We’ve all seen it, and shiver at the memories.
But this was also Jacksonville, now 1-9 on its way to oblivion. Blake Bortles, the rookie quarterback, had developed happy feet in the face of one of the Cowboys’ best pass rushes yet. Four sacks, a veritable bonanza.
Granted, the Cowboys couldn’t leave here without a win. But if it had really been in jeopardy with Weeden in the game, there’s no flag for going back to the first quarterback.
As it was, save for an overthrow of a wide-open Jason Witten early that cost the Cowboys a touchdown, few could have imagined how good Romo would look so soon since the back injury.
Sure, throwing the ball to Dez Bryant certainly helps. But Dez’s second touchdown, a 68-yarder, was a perfectly-placed ball, putting the Cowboys up 24-7 at the half.
Garrett wasn’t feeling it, though. Had Dan Bailey’s 48-yard field goal attempt not been swatted with 4:05 remaining in the third, he indicated he might have pulled Romo then. Or Dez or DeMarco Murray, for that matter.
But with a 24-point lead and 19 minutes still to play, it was all hands on deck.
Of course, Romo didn’t have any problem with the call, not that you’d expect he would. Whatever his faults, he’s as tough as Thursday’s beef Wellington.
Raised that way, apparently.
“I learned from a coach when I first got here about playing through stuff,” he said, smiling at the memory of Bill Parcells. “You go and play and no one cares when you step on the field.
“You gotta go do it.”
On Sunday, Garrett channeled his inner Parcells.
“He seemed fine,” he said of Romo. “Didn’t look like he had any physical restrictions.
“He really looked like himself.”
Yes, he did, rolling right to facilitate the Cowboys’ first touchdown, a 2-yarder to Witten and flitting about the pocket otherwise in typical fashion.
Doesn’t mean it was easy, though, especially when the Jags finally got to him in the second half.
“It’s always uncomfortable no matter when you get hit,” Romo said. “You don’t feel 100 percent.
“It’s uncomfortable, but it’s still manageable.”
A Toradol pill for the pain made it so, for the most part. A quicker hook from his head coach would have helped, too.
Of course, all’s well that ends well. Dallas goes into the bye week 7-3 with a relatively healthy quarterback. Still, as long as Garrett can invoke the former prime minister, let me close with a line that speaks to the spirit of the misfortune the Cowboys so blithely skated.
“Nothing in life is so exhilarating,” Churchill once said, “as to be shot at without result.”
MORE DALLAS COWBOYS COVERAGE
COLUMNISTS
Sherrington: An open letter of apology to the 7-3 Dallas Cowboys after their easy win
PHOTOS/VIDEO
Photos: See Randle's deep dive; Romo, Dez's celebrations in Cowboys' win over Jags
Photos: The scene in London for Cowboys-Jaguars (do they party like Dallas?)
See Dez Bryant’s incredible TD and shout out to LeBron James in Cowboys’ win
EXPERT ANALYSIS
George: Amid mounting off-field distractions, Dez at his best at Wembley
Moore: How Cowboys took care of business in London to avoid 'season-turning loss'
Tracking Murray: Cowboys RB falls behind Emmitt Smith's team-record pace
Cowboys trends: Offensive line returns to dominant form; special teams erratic at best
Cowboys shuffle DT spots, sack quarterback season-high four times
Bob Sturm: Show Dez the money; I would have pulled Romo sooner
5 thoughts: Romo returns, proves Cowboys are legit contender
TV/MEDIA/THE SCENE
Did or didn’t the Cowboys have trouble with curfew in days leading up to Sunday’s game?
Irvin: Fans don’t understand why Romo is risking further injury
London fans try the wave, leave early in convincing Cowboys victory
Cowboys mix up travel plans ahead of bye week
Irvin: Cowboys will play harder with Tony Romo instead of Brandon Weeden
Ex-Cowboy Johnston points out folly of keeping Romo, Murray and Dez on field late
PLAYER/COACH REACTION
Cole Beasley angrily responds via Twitter to fan who criticized him
Jaguar: We played like a college team against Cowboys
London’s Jack Crawford improvises sack celebration, calls it ‘special moment’
Joseph Randle: Playing in London was like a World Cup game
How did Cowboys think Wembley’s slick pitch held up?
Bruce Carter: Rookie Hitchens ‘the best thing since sliced bread’
Jerry Jones, Stephen Jones treated to party on Jags owner’s ‘super yacht,’ which can be rented for $1.6M per week
INJURIES
Rookie Cowboys CB Tyler Patmon injures knee, will undergo further testing
Cowboys rest LB Rolando McClain as rookie continues to shine
On Twitter: @KSherringtonDMN
