Without Bill Parcells there would be no Tony Romo. Tony.is only the 2nd quarterback in NFL Super Bowl era history not to throw a single pass in his career until his 3rd season and end up being a starter for a season.
That's not the only thing he had in common with the first guy. They had the same Head Coach. That first quarterback was Jeff Hostetler, starting quarterback for the 1990 Super Bowl Champion New York Giants.
.....which is why I say there would be no Tony without Bill. You just know.someone.else would have rushed him out there too quickly a la Chad Hensen and Chad Hutchinson and he would be out of football in a year.
Sorry if this has already been discussed and I missed it, but did you hear Parcells tell him that he is "too frail" to hold on to the ball? Tony was never seen as a physical guy. He was seen as a guy who could be very productive when given the weapons. This is why he was never drafted. He could never go in and take the puishment that the majority of starting rookie quarterbacks were forced to do, guys like Troy Aikman, he was molested by the Eagle D that year.
This is why Parcells would never have felt comfortable with until he had his offensive line and his running game and a potentially strong defense.
He had all of that in 2006. The Cowboys had a strong run blocking line with bigs like Flozell, Gurode, and.Davis, all future multiple Pro Bowlers. He had an excellent one two punch in the PROPER use of Barber and Julius Jones. He had young defense with the potential to be great and, in fact, that defense was in the top 10 three consecutive years. The Cowboys were a top ten team in yardage differential four consecutive years.
I object very strongly when I see posters claiming that poor Tony always had to carry the team on his back, not so.
For a team to be a champion they can't just be a great team or even the best team. They have to commit to taking advantage of the opportinities that present itself. I have done a lot of research and discovered that the best team each year only wins the Super Bowl half the time. The best team is based on a combination of record and statistical rank. Some of the best teams like the 70's Rams or the 90's Eagles were the best and eliminated in the divisional round.
That really is the defference between the 70's Steelers, 80's 49ers, 90's Cowboys and today''s Patriots versus the 70's Rams, the 80's Bengals, the 90's Eagles and todays....well.....Cowboys.
Tony Romo and the Cowboys have had their opportunities. They had their chance to put a dagger in their toughest opponents enroute to the Super Bowl, but they.were always the one that got impaled. They simply did not take advantage of the opportunities.
Tony Romo took several seasons to grow up. In his younger seasons, after Parcells left, he violated several of those commandments.
Tony Romo threw impulsively at times and it cost. Parcells warned.that impusive throws were usually bad throws.
Tony Romo became a celebrity quarterback when his girlfriend, actress Jesicca Simpson showed up at a nationally televised game wearing his jersey. The amount of attention she received didnt go.over too well with the opponent, the Cowboys lost.
Tony downplayed the importance of leadership and taking advantage of opportunity whe he said to the effect that if losing the playoff game they had just completed was the worst thing to happen then he would have a wonderful life.
Its not that he was wrong in his perspective but it demonstrated a lack of understanding the importance of taking advantage of those opportunities I previously mentioned. You can bet he understands now.
The same goes for his trip down to a prominent beach in the middle of the bye leading up to their playoff game....a game they lost.
I would be genuinely disappointed for Tony Romo and all of his fans if he did not win a Super Bowl before he retires. I would go so far as to say it would be the difference when talking about the HOF.
However, nobody can say he didnt have his opportunities. In so many games, it was the difference.of single play. Be honest. When the average NFL fan thinks of Tony Romo, what is the first play that comes to their mind? What single play can NFL fans consider as Tony's signature play?
I want Tony back but my years as a fan tells me that his career is over, I hope I am wrong. However, if I right, then, just like Meredith, Staubach, Danny White, and Troy Aikman and any other quarterback, past or future..
....There is always a beginning. There will always be an end.
