Thread: Romo-mentum!

Quarterback switch saving 'Boys' season.

Tony Romo has rejuvenated Bill Parcells and energized his teammates and the city of Dallas, which loves its Cowboys, especially when they are winning.

He beat Peyton Manning nine days ago, will try to beat Eli Manning and the melting-down Giants this weekend, is the NFL's top-rated passer and even has been linked romantically to Jessica Simpson.


His first month of life as the starting quarterback of America's Team, the highest profile position in the NFL, has been pretty good.
But will it last?
Only Romo and Simpson know if there's anything to the speculation they're an item. The football part, well, Romo is one of the biggest stories of the season, but now must prove he can sustain it.

He got strong endorsements yesterday from two important precincts: Cowboys Hall of Fame quarterbacks Troy Aikman, who won three Super Bowls, and Roger Staubach, who won two. They believe Romo can keep this going. And not just this year. "For those out there being cynical and waiting for the wheels to fall off, I think they'll be waiting for awhile," Aikman said from Dallas. "This guy is pretty good. Bill thinks this kid is the real deal. I do, too. I think he can be here for a long time. He's a really good player."

Staubach, also speaking from Dallas, said, "I like everything I see about him. Tony is the real deal. He goes out there and makes plays. He's a talented kid and he's very competitive. He's got the command of his team. They are going to fight for him."

Romo signed in 2003 as a rookie free agent from Division I-AA Eastern Illinois, but took only one snap at quarterback his first three years — a knee on the final play of a blowout victory in Philly last year. But Parcells obviously saw something he liked, because even as he was starting Quincy Carter, then brought in Drew Henson, Vinny Testaverde and Drew Bledsoe, he kept Romo around. After Parcells tried to recreate his past with Testaverde and Bledsoe and was criticized for not developing Henson, it's an unknown who has bailed him out.

He threw the first two passes of his career in garbage time against the Texans on Oct. 15. The next week, Parcells inserted him at the start of the third quarter of the Cowboys' embarrassing 36-22 loss to the Giants after Bledsoe threw an awful interception near the end of the half.

Romo got his first pass picked off. He finished with two TDs and three INTs, and was named the starter a few days later. Parcells looked morose on the sidelines during that Giants game but his demeanor quickly changed once Romo started lighting it up. As a starter, Romo is 4-1 with 10 TDs and two INTs.

The last time Bledsoe lost his job in midseason was 2001. The new quarterback was Tom Brady. We all know how that turned out. The circumstances were different: Bledsoe was hurt, then Brady played so well that Bill Belichick never gave Bledsoe his job back.

Romo has some Brady in him: Lots of personality and charisma, strong leader, good mobility, strong enough arm, popular in the locker room and loves to play. Romo's quick release makes his arm appear stronger than it is.

The new catch phrase in Dallas is the Cowboys have "Romomentum." Fans hung a banner with his name in the Cowboys Ring of Honor last week. That's extremely premature, of course, but if he keeps playing at this level, the Cowboys could break their franchise-record drought of 10 years without a playoff victory.

Romo's emergence has even made the T.O. Circus a secondary issue. He does an entertaining imitation of Brett Favre, that he probably learned growing up in Burlington, Wis. Parcells is even taking his trademark shots at Romo, trying to make sure his success doesn't make his ego spin out of control. After Romo tied a club record by throwing five touchdown passes against the Bucs on Thanksgiving, Parcells said even he could have thrown a couple of them. "He's a football guy and he's interested in playing well," Parcells said. "But we've got a ways to go here. So put the anointing oil away, okay?"
In other words, as Parcells always says about young players on a hot streak: Don't put him in Canton just yet. "I play the game with passion. I enjoy the game," Romo was quoted. "It's a lot of fun when I'm out there." Parcells gravitates towards players who like football.
"Listen, I'm a football guy, 24-7," Romo said.
That is the first step to being a Parcells Guy.
"Bill has done a great job with Tony," said Saints coach Sean Payton, who coached Romo his first three years in Dallas. "They complement each other well. Tony can take the criticism and get better from it."

Payton says that on Romo's first preseason play as a rookie, he fumbled the snap, picked it up, threw an interception, and "had to walk over to the sideline and deal with Bill."

There were 13 quarterbacks drafted in 2003, but none of them was Romo. The Cowboys had insight because Payton also went to Eastern Illinois. Then when Payton was hired as the Saints coach this year, he wanted to trade for Romo, but there never were any serious talks; Romo was not available. Parcells knew he had something in Romo. His only mistake was waiting too long to let him show it.

Originally published on November 28, 2006
son

Originally Posted by IainDaniel

So you are saying that Texans are a bunch of bandwagon jumpers

Lol ... yeah pretty much.