Draw your own parallels

[Idgit]

2006 Playoffs vs Seattle....when Romo botched the hold on the field goal to win the game in Parcells' last game ever.

2007 playoffs vs Giants....forced interception in the endzone at the end of the game when we went in as #1 seed.

There's two easy ones.

Those are two outright awful examples. The SEA game where we lost the lead the team had earned by Terry Glenn fumbling at our own goal line, and then Tony led the offense all the way down the field for the go-ahead score when the officials reversed Witten's first down leading to a bobbled ST play that had nothing to do with him as a QB (which is the point of the evaluation here, remember). And the Giants game where he played really well, had multiple drive killing drops, a bogus grounding call at the end of the game that put us in a 4th and 25 where he had no choice but to force the ball into coverage on a prayer.

Seriously. These are examples of how every game in the NFL is lost. Yes, the QB directly contributed to multiple plays in each game that could have won the game and didn't, but that's because QBs handle the ball on every snap and throw it 40 times each week. If your expectations are that they not make any mistakes, then your expectations are ridiculous. But go back and check Tony's td:int ratios for those two seasons in question, and you'll find he does a pretty good job limiting mistakes while being productive.

 

[TwoDeep3]

This list is a joke... five regular season games, four of them not even division games. Suddenly another Romo hater wants to turn every regular season game into a big game, after years of downplaying Romo's performance in these same games. Simple-simon analysis, as if every time an interception is thrown it's a mistake, or even the quarterback's fault. You obviously didn't watch the games, since Carpenter only had one interception (the other returned for a TD was Chris Houston, on a play where Robinson did not run his route/face the receiver). Your analysis is a joke, since you don't know anything about football ...so trust me your opinion matters zilch to me. You're just another Romo hater with Romo hater underoos.

You asked for games he blew. Now you put stipulations on those games to fit your criteria.

Those were off the top of my head, but there are others.

And look again, Sparky. I am not a hater.

I am just not an excuse maker.

 

[TwoDeep3]

You could have just said that Romo will not see LBer running under routes. The best illustration of that isn't even listed above. That would be the 2005 Buffalo game where he kept on doing it time and again.

I guess you won't include that one because he overcame those difficulties to win the game. Confirmation bias is fun on your part I take it.

No, I don't include that because I worked that night and did not see the game.

But if you review the list again, tell me you didn't think Revis was playing linebacker that night. Please Fuzzy, tell me it ain't so.

 

[sonnyboy]

2006 Playoffs vs Seattle....when Romo botched the hold on the field goal to win the game in Parcells' last game ever.

2007 playoffs vs Giants....forced interception in the endzone at the end of the game when we went in as #1 seed.

There's two easy ones.

Smoke crack much? It was 4th down, 20 plus yards away from the endzone with under 10 secs on the clock and no TOs. That play needed to end with a pass into the endzone.

In this spot you want one of two things.....
A TD or the defense forced to make a play on the ball in the endzone. You don't want the ball to hit the ground or fly out the back of the end zone.

 

[jobberone]

Honestly, I think his quote is far more applicable to Dallas (particularly late in the year) than it is New Orleans. If Brees' 5000 yards and 43 TDs somehow came in the face of a more difficult task on his part, I'd hate to see what he could do if he had it easy.

It's not that they couldn't run, it's that they were in shoot outs every single week and needed Brees to lead the league in passing just to keep them in the game. Their yards per carry is right on par with the league average.

They might be the only team ever to give up 7000 yards of offense. Any sort of defensive help at all and they would have been a much better team.

Dallas absolutely couldn't run and I think a 2nd to last rushing average is a testament to that. So looking at the two aspects, I think it's a more fitting comment for Dallas and in particular the 2nd half of the season.

Then again, even with respectable defensive play early in the year prior to all the injuries, the offense wasn't exactly banging on all cylinders.

You're right. Both the offense and defense failed the team last year. It's generally the offense that has failed the team points wise. I can make an argument that the defense has failed despite some reasonable points given up because they often fail to hold when the game is on the line and they don't make turnovers.

Back to the OP. That's true. Tony has too much weight on him. However, that doesn't excuse the 'Tony moments'. I think those moments are way more than overshadowed by his abilities though. You cannot discount the fact he has to carry the team and emphasize his mistakes when asked to.

The only way to settle the issue is to give him a good offense and defense and see what he can do with it. The first 13 games of 2007 are a pretty good example.

 

[ufcrules1]

I use to be a HUGE Romo fan, now I see him for what he is, a good QB that has put up huge numbers, but is equally proned to giving away games due to his boneheaded mistakes during crunch time. I jumped off his boat a while back, although I still wish him success, not only for the Cowboys, but him as an individual, I have very little hope he will take us to a SB (insert but he does'nt have any help excuse). Having said that, he is not our future and I wouldn't be too disappointed if he left. Now, here comes the "be careful what you wish for crowd".....

This describes me exactly.. heck,I still have his jersey up in my office. He could certainly use a better team around him but he is part of the problem there too. It's easy to see when he was EASILY the weakest link in the BIGGEST game of our season against the Commanders. No, he didn't just make one mistake at the end, he threw 3 bad interceptions that were ALL his fault and he was off all night. When the pressure is at it's highest, Tony's brain shuts down.

The only difference between Tony and some of the elite QB's are how they use their brains. Tony is super talented and athletic but he doesn't use his brain half the time. Take a guy like Rodgers, he will let you sack him over and over.. his main goal is to protect the football and score when he can. But the whole time he is just waiting for you to screw up so he can burn you, and then he does. He is extremely patient. His offensive line has been just as bad if not worse than ours yet he still puts up huge numbers and rarely turns the ball over. Who is their running back? Alex Green? So Rodgers has a crap Oline and a crap running back and yet he still finds a way to produce at an elite level.

 

[DFWJC]

I can name four alone from the Detroit game a couple years ago .

Detroit game? Really? About as far from crunch time as you can imagine. Terrible example

You call an early season, non-divison game while your team is playing with a lead (and the QB is playing with broken ribs) and it's not in 4th qtr "crunch time"? It doesn't get any further from the truth than that.

You want to use the 4th qtr pick vs Washington, fine. He deserves blame. Just like Peyton does for the game ending pick in the playoff game vs Balitmore.

But don't go throwing searching for games were he played poorly and making the situation more than it was.

 

[DFWJC]

This list is a joke... five regular season games, four of them not even division games. Suddenly another Romo hater wants to turn every regular season game into a big game, after years of downplaying Romo's performance in these same games. Simple-simon analysis, as if every time an interception is thrown it's a mistake, or even the quarterback's fault. You obviously didn't watch the games, since Carpenter only had one interception (the other returned for a TD was Chris Houston, on a play where Robinson did not run his route/face the receiver). Your analysis is a joke, since you don't know anything about football ...so trust me your opinion matters zilch to me. You're just another Romo hater with Romo hater underoos.

It blows me away how some of these non-division regular season games take on a life of their own--become the poster child games for the haters.

I always though it was odd how the opening day loss at the Jets seemed to be a bigger game than the opening day win at the Giants. People grab a hold of some poor play in parts of some of those games and keep it dear to their heart for the next decade.

 

[CowboyGil]

Last time I looked, there are 53 guys on the roster. So it's just not part of the TEAM concept to blame any loss on just one player. I'd hate to be on a team with some of you guys.

 

[theebs]

Hasnt he thrown like 55 int's in the last three years also?

and its obvious to everyone when your defense is bad and your running game is bad what is going to happen.

We just have some really poor fans.

 

[Stash]

You're right. Both the offense and defense failed the team last year. It's generally the offense that has failed the team points wise. I can make an argument that the defense has failed despite some reasonable points given up because they often fail to hold when the game is on the line and they don't make turnovers.

Back to the OP. That's true. Tony has too much weight on him. However, that doesn't excuse the 'Tony moments'. I think those moments are way more than overshadowed by his abilities though. You cannot discount the fact he has to carry the team and emphasize his mistakes when asked to.

The only way to settle the issue is to give him a good offense and defense and see what he can do with it. The first 13 games of 2007 are a pretty good example.

Great post.

 

[Yakuza Rich]

I think that every QB runs into this issue. There's going to be times when the defense needs to win games for the team or the running game has to be more productive than usual to make the QB's job easier on a day where they don't have their A game.

I think what separates Brees, Rodgers, Brady and Peyton from the rest of the league is that they are more apt to still be extremely productive and win more games when the defense and running game isn't there. I don't think it's a knock against Roethlisberger, Flacco, Romo, Ryan, etc...it's just that I believe Brees, Brady, Rodgers and Peyton are elite QB's and the others are not at this point.

The real knock is against the organization for being unable to develop a defense and a running game that is consistently good. And by now they should realize that Romo plays his best when he is getting good pay from the RT position.






YR

 

[rocboy22]

You asked for games he blew. Now you put stipulations on those games to fit your criteria.

Those were off the top of my head, but there are others.

And look again, Sparky. I am not a hater.

I am just not an excuse maker.

I'm sorry, but anyone who thinks Tony Romo blew the Giants playoff game in 07 by throwing the pick at the end is just plain stupid. S T U P I D. Its fourth and long with hardly any time left. What else is ANYONE supposed to do?? Should he have thrown it away so it wouldn't get picked and turn it over on downs instead?? take a sack and turn it over on downs?

 

[burmafrd]

This describes me exactly.. heck,I still have his jersey up in my office. He could certainly use a better team around him but he is part of the problem there too. It's easy to see when he was EASILY the weakest link in the BIGGEST game of our season against the Commanders. No, he didn't just make one mistake at the end, he threw 3 bad interceptions that were ALL his fault and he was off all night. When the pressure is at it's highest, Tony's brain shuts down.

The only difference between Tony and some of the elite QB's are how they use their brains. Tony is super talented and athletic but he doesn't use his brain half the time. Take a guy like Rodgers, he will let you sack him over and over.. his main goal is to protect the football and score when he can. But the whole time he is just waiting for you to screw up so he can burn you, and then he does. He is extremely patient. His offensive line has been just as bad if not worse than ours yet he still puts up huge numbers and rarely turns the ball over. Who is their running back? Alex Green? So Rodgers has a crap Oline and a crap running back and yet he still finds a way to produce at an elite level.

BS on you ever being a Romo fan

 

[burmafrd]

Crunch time is 4th quarter in a tight game.

Not before

Interesting how the room hating fanatics also conveniently forget the games he got us a lead late in the 4th and the D gave it up.

Or the games we went into the 4th with a lead and the D gave it up

 

[DFWJC]

Crunch time is 4th quarter in a tight game.

Not before

Interesting how the room hating fanatics also conveniently forget the games he got us a lead late in the 4th and the D gave it up.

Or the games we went into the 4th with a lead and the D gave it up

For that matter....
Romo either led the league (or was second) in 4th quarter comeback WINS last season.

He had other times where they just came up short--like the new orleans game where we came all the way back to send it it to overtime.

From listening to some of thses guys, you'd think the guy never came up big in clutch situations, when he actually does it very often.

 

[Angus]

I suspect the bulk of the Romo-detractors here are draft-snobs nursing a long-held disdain for an undrafted free agent whose success puts their prejudice to shame, prejudice that gets in the way of appreciating on-the-field quarterbacking excellence interrupted on very rare occasions by a seeming mistake in passing judgement occasioned, perhaps, by a breakdown of expected protection.

Too bad.

 

[Fansince64]

2006 Playoffs vs Seattle....when Romo botched the hold on the field goal to win the game in Parcells' last game ever.

2007 playoffs vs Giants....forced interception in the endzone at the end of the game when we went in as #1 seed.

There's two easy ones.

You conveniently forget about the two (not one but two) perfect TD passes Tony threw at the end of that game:
1. The pass that bounced off of Fasano's facemask 2 yards deep in the endzone.
2. The perfectly thrown long TD pass to Crayton with about 30 seconds to play when Tony rolled to the right and threw (after evading another free rusher of course) and numb-nuts Crayton inexplicably stopped immediately after blowing past the DB and then tried to restart when he saw the pass in the air. I have rewatched that play dozens of times and the pass lands about 6-7 yards deep in the endzone just as Crayton is crossing the goal line. Without that idiotic stop (when he had a two step lead on the DB), that pass hits him in stride for the winning TD. Unless, of course, numb-nuts drops yet another one!


Monte Sliger

 

[DandyDon1722]

You conveniently forget about the two (not one but two) perfect TD passes Tony threw at the end of that game:
1. The pass that bounced off of Fasano's facemask 2 yards deep in the endzone.
2. The perfectly thrown long TD pass to Crayton with about 30 seconds to play when Tony rolled to the right and threw (after evading another free rusher of course) and numb-nuts Crayton inexplicably stopped immediately after blowing past the DB and then tried to restart when he saw the pass in the air. I have rewatched that play dozens of times and the pass lands about 6-7 yards deep in the endzone just as Crayton is crossing the goal line. Without that idiotic stop (when he had a two step lead on the DB), that pass hits him in stride for the winning TD. Unless, of course, numb-nuts drops yet another one!


Monte Sliger

Man, some of you guys are on it. I wish we could compile a list of threads quotes and arm Darrin Woodsen for a visit to First Take and unleash it on Stephen A Smith (let alone the entire Network). The more you break Romo down the more obvious it is how much help he needs (and hasn't gotten) and when Sean Peyton says it about Brees (insert Romo) it immediately translates.

I know he's had his moments but not as many as some believe and although I never needed convincing this very thread is the reason you ride out his next contract for the duration.

 

[jnday]

I use to be a HUGE Romo fan, now I see him for what he is, a good QB that has put up huge numbers, but is equally proned to giving away games due to his boneheaded mistakes during crunch time. I jumped off his boat a while back, athough I still wish him success, not only for the Cowboys, but him as an individual, I have very little hope he will take us to a SB (insert but he diesnt have any help excuse). Having said that, he is not our future and I wouldn't be too dissapointed if he left. Now, here comes the "be careful what you wish for crowd".....

That "be carefull of what you wish for crowd" is scared to go back to the scrub QB years and I understand that. The thing to he considered is Romo is not getting any younger or better. He is not going to be playing for many more years. I don't see the Cowboys having enough time and resources to upgrade the trenches before his play declines. The upgrades should have started three years ago.

You are dead on the money with your take of Romo by the way. A good QB that will lose pressure games by trying to do too much. My biggest concern is the salary cap space that he is about to eat up. It comes a point in a players career where cost is greater than value. Romo is at that point, but poor planning has prevented a quality replacement from being in place.