Jerry: Tony Romo will return at some point near the end of the year at the latest

[Idgit]

The Cowboys have a problem on their hands, and it's not necessarily good.

Here's the deal:

1. The Cowboys CAN'T pull Dak while the team is still winning. You affect chemistry and set up a scenario where the organization will be second-guessed and Romo will be second-guessed if we should lose anywhere on our journey toward the Super Bowl.

2. At some point, Romo has to get live reps if he's healthy. The longer you put that off, the more difficult it becomes to either put him in and/or give him a chance to knock the rust off.

3. As one poster has said, the playoffs is a different animal than the regular season. Dak is going to see some defenses he hasn't seen in the regular season. Assuming this overwhelms him, you don't want to have Tony Romo come in rusty trying to win for you - particularly when he's returning from an injury, albeit healthy at the time he is ready to play.

4. Unless there's MAJOR regression, you don't take Dak out. No, the Philly game would not have been the game to judge whether Dak is still worthy of the starting quarterback role. That would have done more to shatter his confidence than anything. You can't simply pull the hook on your quarterback just because he has a bad game. And Dak appears to be the future, so you definitely don't want to do that to him.

So what's the solution? Wrap up the No. 1 seed with three to two games left. Then you give Dak some playing time the first half, and you insert Romo in the second half of "meaningless" games. You evaluate both Dak and Romo to determine, for the former, if he, indeed, is mentally ready for the playoffs and, for the later, whether he has sufficiently shaken off the rust and has reestablished his own chemistry with the team.

It may be a good situation to have both Dak and Romo available, but it's definitely a delicate situation which could have disastrous consequences and potentially ruin the season.

I don't buy this, btw. This team can win with either of these QBs. The more Dak plays, the more he sees and the more opportunity he's got to improve.

Putting Tony in could very well be a decent upgrade at the most important position on the field. It's possible he's rusty or has lost his edge. It's also possible he rises to the challenge and comes back even better than he was before he got pushed. Either way, if he's not better, there's nothing to say we can't go back to Dak.

The whole jeopardy angle gets built around the mythical idea that playing Tony Romo somehow is a threat to the team's momentum. One, I don't buy that this team wouldn't happily play behind either of these QBs. Two, that's just not how momentum works on teams from my experience. Executing well gets wins. Winning gets 'momentum.' Executing well also breeds confidence. People think it's the momentum that breeds the confidence, but both momentum and confidence are by-products of executing well. As long as either Dak or Tony can consistently execute well, we're good and there's really nothing to worry about.

If we want to worry about something, we should worry about what we do when we play a team that also has a good offense and can pressure the QB. Somehow, miraculously, there appears to be a dramatic shortage of such teams in the NFC right now, but it won't stay that way. Somebody's going to get hot for a late season run, or somebodies. They always do.

 

[Zordon]

The Cowboys have a problem on their hands, and it's not necessarily good.

Here's the deal:

1. The Cowboys CAN'T pull Dak while the team is still winning. You affect chemistry and set up a scenario where the organization will be second-guessed and Romo will be second-guessed if we should lose anywhere on our journey toward the Super Bowl.

2. At some point, Romo has to get live reps if he's healthy. The longer you put that off, the more difficult it becomes to either put him in and/or give him a chance to knock the rust off.

3. As one poster has said, the playoffs is a different animal than the regular season. Dak is going to see some defenses he hasn't seen in the regular season. Assuming this overwhelms him, you don't want to have Tony Romo come in rusty trying to win for you - particularly when he's returning from an injury, albeit healthy at the time he is ready to play.

4. Unless there's MAJOR regression, you don't take Dak out. No, the Philly game would not have been the game to judge whether Dak is still worthy of the starting quarterback role. That would have done more to shatter his confidence than anything. You can't simply pull the hook on your quarterback just because he has a bad game. And Dak appears to be the future, so you definitely don't want to do that to him.

So what's the solution? Wrap up the No. 1 seed with three to two games left. Then you give Dak some playing time the first half, and you insert Romo in the second half of "meaningless" games. You evaluate both Dak and Romo to determine, for the former, if he, indeed, is mentally ready for the playoffs and, for the later, whether he has sufficiently shaken off the rust and has reestablished his own chemistry with the team.

It may be a good situation to have both Dak and Romo available, but it's definitely a delicate situation which could have disastrous consequences and potentially ruin the season.

Look, if Dak leads us to the #1 seed, it's his team period. No pulling, no experimenting, no more tests. You risk causing friction in the locker room if you put in Romo at the very end of the season just b/c we don't know how the kid will react to a playoff atmosphere.

 

[Diehardblues]

I have faith our head football guy is going to screw this up. Lol

 

[Kevinicus]

The Cowboys have a problem on their hands, and it's not necessarily good.

Here's the deal:

1. The Cowboys CAN'T pull Dak while the team is still winning. You affect chemistry and set up a scenario where the organization will be second-guessed and Romo will be second-guessed if we should lose anywhere on our journey toward the Super Bowl.

2. At some point, Romo has to get live reps if he's healthy. The longer you put that off, the more difficult it becomes to either put him in and/or give him a chance to knock the rust off.

3. As one poster has said, the playoffs is a different animal than the regular season. Dak is going to see some defenses he hasn't seen in the regular season. Assuming this overwhelms him, you don't want to have Tony Romo come in rusty trying to win for you - particularly when he's returning from an injury, albeit healthy at the time he is ready to play.

4. Unless there's MAJOR regression, you don't take Dak out. No, the Philly game would not have been the game to judge whether Dak is still worthy of the starting quarterback role. That would have done more to shatter his confidence than anything. You can't simply pull the hook on your quarterback just because he has a bad game. And Dak appears to be the future, so you definitely don't want to do that to him.

So what's the solution? Wrap up the No. 1 seed with three to two games left. Then you give Dak some playing time the first half, and you insert Romo in the second half of "meaningless" games. You evaluate both Dak and Romo to determine, for the former, if he, indeed, is mentally ready for the playoffs and, for the later, whether he has sufficiently shaken off the rust and has reestablished his own chemistry with the team.

It may be a good situation to have both Dak and Romo available, but it's definitely a delicate situation which could have disastrous consequences and potentially ruin the season.

1. The chemistry thing is a non-issue. Romo has just as much, and probably more chemistry with these guys. Is the offense line and Zeke going to not block or run all of the sudden? And who gives a crap about being second-guessed? If the team is afraid of that, then they're already screwed.

2. Agreed. As soon as he is healthy, he needs to be in. Don't wait until you absolutely need him and it's too late.

3. Agreed.

4. I think the Philly game is a great game to judge by. He was finally put into difficult situations by the opposing team (first time since NY) and it was bad. It's not that he had a bad game, it's the way it was bad. He looked like a deer in headlights that was overwhelmed and couldn't think straight, let alone well. Add to that, his accuracy was troubling, to say the least. He still has a long way to go. I'm not convinced he looks like the future just yet.

 

[superonyx]

Maybe I am getting too old and soft..
But that little boy in me still wants the good guys to win in the end.
With the brutal media and digital age that good guy is Tony Romo.
While I will certainly be very excited with a superbowl it just wouldn't taste exactly the same if this is the image I stuck in my head.
Plus the media will pan to Romo on the sidelines watching every chance they could.

 

[Kaiser]

Look, if Dak leads us to the #1 seed, it's his team period. No pulling, no experimenting, no more tests. You risk causing friction in the locker room if you put in Romo at the very end of the season just b/c we don't know how the kid will react to a playoff atmosphere.

You risk friction if you don't put Romo in at the end of the season if you are playing a rookie QB and have a Pro Bowl QB that has won playoff games before. It cuts both ways.

 

[ConstantReboot]

I disagree. If Romo does not play this year Stephen Jones will not have him on the roster next year and they will release him. They did the exact thing to Demarcus ware. Stephen apparently was the guy who pushed ware out the door and I see no reason they would keep romo around at his salary and of course the speculation that would come with having him here with that salary not starting.

The Jones's will release Romo and it will be like he was never here going into the next training camp, that is how they operate. They have done it to all the vets that have left here. Romo will be no different because they have a new guy to be the face of the franchise.

I think they will treat the Romo situation just like Ware. They will ask Romo for a paycut to be a part-time player. Then they will either trade or release him.

I hated that they did this to Ware. They will do it to Romo also. Business is business.

 

[Mr Cowboy]

The Dallas Cowboys are on a 6 game winning streak, and have the best record in the NFC. They are number 2 in the latest power rankings. Enjoy the ride and let it play out. No need to be taking sides and being pisses off about our QB situation. After the long, grueling season last year, with no viable options at QB, we should be enjoying this one where we have 2. I don't get the need to be angry over what we have going and picking sides over our QBs.

ENJOY THE RIDE!

 

[Nightman]

Hey Jerry, don't pee on my leg and tell me it's raining......if Dak stunk Tony would've been back by now...the delay is just a ruse it the cover-up is always worse than the crime

Bring Tony back for Sanchez and use the active roster spot on Frazier or a DB we need with Church and Mo out

Just say "Dak is the starter" and be done with it

 

[Dale]

You risk friction if you don't put Romo in at the end of the season if you are playing a rookie QB and have a Pro Bowl QB that has won playoff games before. It cuts both ways.

Honestly, I think a lot of this is going to play itself out.

If Dak plays the majority of the rest of the season looking like the 100-QB Rating guy and the guy who closed the Philly game, it's full steam ahead with Dak. If he looks more like the other Dak we saw against Philly, a change will be made and he will re-enter the developmental stage of his career.

 

[Diehardblues]

I can't imagine a worse scenario than for Romo to finally win a ring on the bench if he's healthy and never played in a game .

Do we really want to win a championship like that?

 

[Zordon]

You risk friction if you don't put Romo in at the end of the season if you are playing a rookie QB and have a Pro Bowl QB that has won playoff games before. It cuts both ways.

No it doesn't. Do you see the chemistry in the locker room right now? Everybody loves playing with Dak. Nobody is harping about a Romo return.

If you understand the grind of a 16 game regular season, you will understand why it would be difficult to pull a player who led you through that grind. Bounds build, synergy builds going through that grind. Dak would have led us through that and came out the #1 seed in the conference yet you really believe there would still be players in that locker room wanting Romo to take over. Cmon man.

 

[superonyx]

I believe Seattle will be the team in the NFC we still need to go through to make it to the superbowl.
After watching the Eagles defense make Dak look like he wasn't sure where to go with the ball, I have 2 fears if we need to ride Dak to the superbowl.
1. Dak playing against the nasty seattle defense that is stronger in almost every position than philly.
2. Romo being put in rusty against an aggressive Seattle defense.

To Daks credit he seems like a very fast learner and his deer in headlights moments probably wont end with interceptions like most young Qb's. He does take care of the ball.

This is a tough call for the team to make. I imagine knowing the players involved personally makes it even tougher. They both seem like good team guys that wont start crap if they are not playing.

 

[Diehardblues]

Honestly, I think a lot of this is going to play itself out.

If Dak plays the majority of the rest of the season looking like the 100-QB Rating guy and the guy who closed the Philly game, it's full steam ahead with Dak. If he looks more like the other Dak we saw against Philly, a change will be made and he will re-enter the developmental stage of his career.

There's the concern I have. If and when Romo finally gets in will we pull him if he does struggle?

 

[Kevinicus]

No it doesn't. Do you see the chemistry in the locker room right now? Everybody loves playing with Dak. Nobody is harping about a Romo return.

If you understand the grind of a 16 game regular season, you will understand why it would be difficult to pull a player who led you through that grind. Bounds build, synergy builds going through that grind. Dak would have led us through that and came out the #1 seed in the conference yet you really believe there would still be players in that locker room wanting Romo to take over. Cmon man.

You actually think Dak is who is leading this team?

 

[Super_Kazuya]

No it doesn't. Do you see the chemistry in the locker room right now? Everybody loves playing with Dak. Nobody is harping about a Romo return.

If you understand the grind of a 16 game regular season, you will understand why it would be difficult to pull a player who led you through that grind. Bounds build, synergy builds going through that grind. Dak would have led us through that and came out the #1 seed in the conference yet you really believe there would still be players in that locker room wanting Romo to take over. Cmon man.

This is stupid. Dak is a rookie. He isn't leading anyone. Does he inspire people, energize them with his youth? Sure. But he isn't leading any veteran player. I am sure they are having to correct him more than he has to do any "leading".
The team isn't stupid. They know that Dak is a game manager getting credit for most of their hard work. They are not going to be upset putting in a far superior player. Only the media believes in "chemistry". The team just wants to win.

 

[jwitten82]

I can't imagine a worse scenario than for Romo to finally win a ring on the bench if he's healthy and never played in a game .

Do we really want to win a championship like that?

You serious? Lol I want a championship, I dont care who gets it for us

 

[DallasEast]

1. The Cowboys CAN'T pull Dak while the team is still winning. You affect chemistry and set up a scenario where the organization will be second-guessed and Romo will be second-guessed if we should lose anywhere on our journey toward the Super Bowl.

I disagree. For discussion sake, remove Prescott and Romo from the equation. Let's take this from a team sports perspective--the sport of football in this instance.

A coaching staff implement gameplans. The players execute the schemes. 11 guys playing well on defense. Special teams play is good enough.

Turn to the offense. Offensive line does well pass blocking--perhaps blocks somewhat better on run plays. Receivers (including tight end) are getting open and catching passes consistently. Running back's carrying the ball lights out, tops in the league.

There are two quarterbacks. Both quarterbacks have demonstrated they can excel in the same offensive scheme. The variable of the equation? One quarterback is substituted for the other.

A disruption of chemistry is not sound in my opinion based solely on the substitution since any real potential problem does not hinge upon inner or outer perceptions. Any real problem with chemistry centers upon the play on the field. I would agree upon a disruption in chemistry if there were personalities involved intentionally or unintentionally working counter to player focus but my impression has been that everyone owns the correct attitude towards doing their individual jobs to the best of their abilities.

It's still football. The variable involved is too integrated, nondisruptive, and highly motivated to negatively impact real team chemistry on the field. Just my opinion though.

 

[percyhoward]

After not playing for more than a year? In what world does that work out well for Tony or the team? I would rather just have Dak go down with the ship and chalk it up as a learning experience.

Me too, especially now knowing that he can play great after looking bad for 3 quarters.

 

[Diehardblues]

You serious? Lol I want a championship, I dont care who gets it for us

What would that do to the Romo legacy?