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Romo follows Favre's unlikely path to the top
By Pete Dougherty
pdougher@greenbaypressgazette.com
When the Green Bay Packers last played the Dallas Cowboys in 2004, Tony Romo was a backup quarterback thrilled to be on the same Lambeau Field he'd seen so often on television while growing up, and warming up not far from his boyhood football hero, Brett Favre.
On Thursday at Dallas' Texas Stadium, Romo, a Burlington High School graduate, will face the Packers for the first time since he's become an NFL sensation in the last year as the Cowboys' unexpected franchise quarterback.
Over the weekend, a scout who knows the Cowboys well was discussing Thursday's matchup between the Packers and Cowboys, who are both 10-1 and playing in a game that could decide home-field advantage for the NFC playoffs, and wondered if playing against Favre might get into Romo's head. Would he try too hard to beat Favre, or to impress him?
"(Romo) thought (warming up near Favre in 2004) was pretty neat," said Steve Berezowitz, who was an assistant football coach and head basketball coach for Romo's high school teams at Burlington. "But I think that's worn off. He's been in the league long enough, and I know he's pretty young as a starting quarterback, but I think it's more focused on how big this game is. That's one thing (for Romo) being from Wisconsin, watching what happens when Green Bay has home-field advantage. It's two different worlds when you're talking about playing a playoff game in Dallas and playing a playoff game up at Lambeau."
Favre and Romo come into this game as two of the NFL's best quarterbacks. Romo is third in the NFL with a passer rating of 105.6 points, while Favre is fifth at 98.6.
Though they're well apart in age, Favre (38) and Romo (27) share similarities in their roads to becoming the starters for two of the most decorated franchises in the NFL and in the way they play the game.
Both were lightly recruited out of high school: Favre's only Division I scholarship offer was to Southern Mississippi, and that was as a general athlete, not necessarily a quarterback. Romo probably would have attended the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater as a football and basketball player had not Division I-AA Eastern Illinois stepped in late and offered him a football scholarship.
Both are instinctive, improvisational quarterbacks who make some of their most impressive plays outside the pocket. Favre is the more physically gifted because of his body and arm strength, but Romo's an excellent athlete with good mobility and the field vision of a great point guard in basketball.
"He's creative, a lot like I was early in my career, uses his feet," Favre said when asked if he sees any similarities between himself and Romo. "He's a lot more mobile than I am now, makes plays when plays are not there."
Romo's road to becoming the Cowboys' franchise quarterback is improbable. In high school, his favorite sport was basketball, but he surprised his coaches when he decided to concentrate on football for college. He was honorable-mention all-state in basketball as a senior, and Berezowitz thinks he was good enough to have played basketball at the mid-Division I level. But Romo thought he could go the farthest in football, and he's advanced more than any of his high school coaches could have dreamed.
"What influenced him with basketball was he was a 'tweener size at 6-2," said Steve Gerber, who was Romo's football coach in high school, and like Berezowitz, stays in regular contact with his former player. "He wasn't quite quick enough to be a (point) guard. No, I didn't think this would ever happen. But it has, and it's exciting."
Romo jokes that he didn't deserve to be recruited by the likes of the University of Wisconsin in football, even though he's better in the NFL than any quarterback that school has produced in decades.
"The thing about it, I can see why (Wisconsin showed no interest). I pretty much sucked," Romo said. "Compared to some of the guys that had come out of there, I tell you what, I would not have recruited me. I was an average quarterback. I mean, I did some things, I ran around and made some plays, but I didn't throw the football very well, a little undersized, all those things. There was nothing that said, 'Go get this guy.'"
Romo was a three-year starter at Eastern Illinois and the Division I-AA player of the year as a senior. He went undrafted mostly because of concerns about his arm strength, and signed with the Cowboys, who had Vinny Testaverde as their starter and had acquired Drew Henson as a possible quarterback of the future. Romo made the roster because Quincy Carter failed a drug test during training camp and was suspended indefinitely by the NFL.
That turned out especially well for Romo because Testaverde became his mentor. Testaverde had become a workout fiend, and had untold experiences as a 41-year-old starting quarterback at the time.
"From what I could gather, (Romo) really learned a lot about not just the game, but life as a professional athlete," Gerber said. "They spent a lot of time together. He worked very hard, not just physically, for the eventual day his opportunity would come."
Romo spent 3½ years as a backup before former Cowboys coach Bill Parcells benched Drew Bledsoe and made Romo the starter in the seventh game last season. He became a sensation because of his effective play, flair for the position and disarming personality.
Though the Cowboys lost in the playoffs after he dropped the snap from center on what would have been the game-tying extra point in the final seconds last year against Seattle, Romo has come back a better player and recently signed a seven-year contract that included $30 million in guaranteed money and is worth $69 million.
The Cowboys have plenty of weapons on offense, namely receiver Terrell Owens (58 receptions, 12 touchdowns), tight end Jason Witten (55 receptions, five touchdowns) and a strong two-headed running game with Marion Barber and Julius Jones.
Romo, though, is the trigger man who has thrown 27 touchdowns. His 12 interceptions, though, give him an interception percentage of 3.7 per 100 throws, almost double Favre's 2.1 percent this season.
Romo has advanced from an under-recruited high school player to Division I-AA quarterback to Pro Bowl-caliber player for many reasons, but perhaps the one that has put him over the top is his ability to make quicker decisions as the game has speeded up at each new level.
"I've seen two or three games on him from watching other teams," said Aaron Rodgers, the Packers' backup quarterback. "Does a nice job, gets the ball out of there on time, makes plays outside the pocket. We've got to keep him in the pocket and hopefully surround him and make him beat us from inside the pocket."
http://www.packersnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071126/PKR01/711260455/1989
By Pete Dougherty
pdougher@greenbaypressgazette.com
When the Green Bay Packers last played the Dallas Cowboys in 2004, Tony Romo was a backup quarterback thrilled to be on the same Lambeau Field he'd seen so often on television while growing up, and warming up not far from his boyhood football hero, Brett Favre.
On Thursday at Dallas' Texas Stadium, Romo, a Burlington High School graduate, will face the Packers for the first time since he's become an NFL sensation in the last year as the Cowboys' unexpected franchise quarterback.
Over the weekend, a scout who knows the Cowboys well was discussing Thursday's matchup between the Packers and Cowboys, who are both 10-1 and playing in a game that could decide home-field advantage for the NFC playoffs, and wondered if playing against Favre might get into Romo's head. Would he try too hard to beat Favre, or to impress him?
"(Romo) thought (warming up near Favre in 2004) was pretty neat," said Steve Berezowitz, who was an assistant football coach and head basketball coach for Romo's high school teams at Burlington. "But I think that's worn off. He's been in the league long enough, and I know he's pretty young as a starting quarterback, but I think it's more focused on how big this game is. That's one thing (for Romo) being from Wisconsin, watching what happens when Green Bay has home-field advantage. It's two different worlds when you're talking about playing a playoff game in Dallas and playing a playoff game up at Lambeau."
Favre and Romo come into this game as two of the NFL's best quarterbacks. Romo is third in the NFL with a passer rating of 105.6 points, while Favre is fifth at 98.6.
Though they're well apart in age, Favre (38) and Romo (27) share similarities in their roads to becoming the starters for two of the most decorated franchises in the NFL and in the way they play the game.
Both were lightly recruited out of high school: Favre's only Division I scholarship offer was to Southern Mississippi, and that was as a general athlete, not necessarily a quarterback. Romo probably would have attended the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater as a football and basketball player had not Division I-AA Eastern Illinois stepped in late and offered him a football scholarship.
Both are instinctive, improvisational quarterbacks who make some of their most impressive plays outside the pocket. Favre is the more physically gifted because of his body and arm strength, but Romo's an excellent athlete with good mobility and the field vision of a great point guard in basketball.
"He's creative, a lot like I was early in my career, uses his feet," Favre said when asked if he sees any similarities between himself and Romo. "He's a lot more mobile than I am now, makes plays when plays are not there."
Romo's road to becoming the Cowboys' franchise quarterback is improbable. In high school, his favorite sport was basketball, but he surprised his coaches when he decided to concentrate on football for college. He was honorable-mention all-state in basketball as a senior, and Berezowitz thinks he was good enough to have played basketball at the mid-Division I level. But Romo thought he could go the farthest in football, and he's advanced more than any of his high school coaches could have dreamed.
"What influenced him with basketball was he was a 'tweener size at 6-2," said Steve Gerber, who was Romo's football coach in high school, and like Berezowitz, stays in regular contact with his former player. "He wasn't quite quick enough to be a (point) guard. No, I didn't think this would ever happen. But it has, and it's exciting."
Romo jokes that he didn't deserve to be recruited by the likes of the University of Wisconsin in football, even though he's better in the NFL than any quarterback that school has produced in decades.
"The thing about it, I can see why (Wisconsin showed no interest). I pretty much sucked," Romo said. "Compared to some of the guys that had come out of there, I tell you what, I would not have recruited me. I was an average quarterback. I mean, I did some things, I ran around and made some plays, but I didn't throw the football very well, a little undersized, all those things. There was nothing that said, 'Go get this guy.'"
Romo was a three-year starter at Eastern Illinois and the Division I-AA player of the year as a senior. He went undrafted mostly because of concerns about his arm strength, and signed with the Cowboys, who had Vinny Testaverde as their starter and had acquired Drew Henson as a possible quarterback of the future. Romo made the roster because Quincy Carter failed a drug test during training camp and was suspended indefinitely by the NFL.
That turned out especially well for Romo because Testaverde became his mentor. Testaverde had become a workout fiend, and had untold experiences as a 41-year-old starting quarterback at the time.
"From what I could gather, (Romo) really learned a lot about not just the game, but life as a professional athlete," Gerber said. "They spent a lot of time together. He worked very hard, not just physically, for the eventual day his opportunity would come."
Romo spent 3½ years as a backup before former Cowboys coach Bill Parcells benched Drew Bledsoe and made Romo the starter in the seventh game last season. He became a sensation because of his effective play, flair for the position and disarming personality.
Though the Cowboys lost in the playoffs after he dropped the snap from center on what would have been the game-tying extra point in the final seconds last year against Seattle, Romo has come back a better player and recently signed a seven-year contract that included $30 million in guaranteed money and is worth $69 million.
The Cowboys have plenty of weapons on offense, namely receiver Terrell Owens (58 receptions, 12 touchdowns), tight end Jason Witten (55 receptions, five touchdowns) and a strong two-headed running game with Marion Barber and Julius Jones.
Romo, though, is the trigger man who has thrown 27 touchdowns. His 12 interceptions, though, give him an interception percentage of 3.7 per 100 throws, almost double Favre's 2.1 percent this season.
Romo has advanced from an under-recruited high school player to Division I-AA quarterback to Pro Bowl-caliber player for many reasons, but perhaps the one that has put him over the top is his ability to make quicker decisions as the game has speeded up at each new level.
"I've seen two or three games on him from watching other teams," said Aaron Rodgers, the Packers' backup quarterback. "Does a nice job, gets the ball out of there on time, makes plays outside the pocket. We've got to keep him in the pocket and hopefully surround him and make him beat us from inside the pocket."
http://www.packersnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071126/PKR01/711260455/1989
