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Romo has done his best to once again silence his critics through the first three weeks of this young season. Heading into his team's 31-7 victory over St. Louis, Romo was leading the league in completion percentage.
Dallas' high-profile QB has also thrown six touchdown passes and just one interception so far. The season might only be three weeks old, but the Cowboys couldn't have hoped for a better start from No. 9.
When Dez Bryant was shut down in Week 1, Romo turned to Miles Austin, who recorded 10 catches for 72 yards in the game. In the Week 2 loss against Kansas City, Romo noticed the Chiefs gave Bryant some one-on-one opportunities. He hit Bryant for nine catches, 141 yards and a touchdown in that one.
This week, Romo realized it wasn't on his shoulders to win the game for Dallas. Instead, he was the complement to DeMarco Murray's 175 yards on the ground. As ESPN Dallas' Jean-Jacques Taylor pointed out, Romo complementing the run game isn't exactly a bad thing historically:
Romo has not only been efficient under center, but he's also adapted to whatever situation teams have thrown at him. When Bryant was double-covered against the Giants, Romo didn't force the ball to him. When Murray was running all over the Rams, Romo simply took what the defense gave him in the passing game.
The Cowboys have not exactly been squaring off against the NFL's elite in two of the first three weeks, but they're 2-1 thanks in large part to their quarterback. Even against the 3-0 Chiefs, one or two plays break in Romo's favor, the Cowboys could be the undefeated ones right now.
Don't forget, Romo is producing at this level while nursing injured ribs. If Brett Favre had a start to the year fighting through injury like Romo is this season, he'd be getting praise from all over the NFL.
Of course, Favre had a little more postseason luck in his career than the Cowboys star has had so far.
Romo still has to fight the stigma against him for having just one postseason victory and no Super Bowl ring on his finger. While both aforementioned statements are true, Romo still deserves a few pats on the back for his start this season.
The Dallas quarterback has effectively adapted to all three different ways defenses approached shutting down his offense. He has been smart with the football and has been flat-out effective in the passing game.
Romo can't get rid of the postseason scrutiny in September, but he's showing why Cowboys owner Jerry Jones has faith in him. If Romo continues to play like he has the first three weeks for the next 13 games, Jones won't have any issue signing No. 9's paychecks with a smile.
All statistics courtesy of ESPN.com unless otherwise specified. Alex Hall is a Dallas Cowboys Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter @AlexKHall.
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