Whatever you see, read and hear coming out of Dallas over the next couple of weeks, do not believe it. Cowboys owner Jerry Jones has stated emphatically this week that Tony Romo remains the team’s No. 1 quarterback and it means nothing. There is no controversy in Dallas. There is no Dak Prescott problem. Barring injury or a colossal collapse, Prescott is the Cowboys’ quarterback of the present and the future.
And Jerry Jones knows it. So does Tony Romo.
Dak Prescott answered questions regarding Romo's potential return. #DallasCowboys
🎥: https://t.co/wHJOYZPjVp pic.twitter.com/l2S50v8Rz6
— Dallas Cowboys (@dallascowboys) October 12, 2016
The only issue involved in the ultimate call is sportswriters keep asking Jones about it. Every game Prescott performs at a peak level. Not only is he the best rookie quarterback in the NFL this season, he’s one of the Top Five quarterbacks in the league at present. Prescott is 4-1 as a starter and that one loss was in the final minutes and brought about by wide receiver Terrence Williams forgetting to run out of bounds as time expired. He’s completing 69 percent of his passes for 1,239 yards, four touchdowns, no picks and rushed for 61 yards and three touchdowns. He has one turnover on a sack fumble in five starts.
Prescott has been nothing short of phenomenal and if you’ve been reading my work here at Get More Sports over the last year, you shouldn’t be surprised. He was my No. 1 ranked quarterback in the entire draft throughout the entire draft process. What I saw live in games and on tape did not lie. Prescott was the most pro-ready quarterback in this class. He has the Cowboys already thinking playoffs and if he continues at this pace, he’ll make the Pro Bowl, win NFL offensive rookie of the year and has a shot at the MVP award. That’s not hyperbole.
Dak Prescott, the 8th QB selected in the 2016 draft, is 2nd in QBR this season.
— Gregg Rosenthal (@greggrosenthal) October 10, 2016
So it’s understandable that people get a little testy when Jones states, only when asked (and he’s continually asked) that the starting quarterback job remains Romo’s when healthy. While out nation seems content to be run by idiots at present, Jones is not stupid. There’s nothing else the man could say when asked this question after Week Five of the season.
Asked Jerry Jones about benching a possible 5-1 Dak Prescott if he beats Green Bay on the road for Tony Romo, he walked away
— Clarence Hill Jr (@clarencehilljr) October 10, 2016
Let me be clear. If Prescott continues on this path, it doesn’t matter when Romo gets game-ready again. His time in Dallas is over. There isn’t a player in that locker room, regardless of their feelings toward Romo, that doesn’t understand this. If Romo and Prescott were equal, you’d still go with the young guy. But they aren’t equal. On this particular team and this particular time, Prescott is the superior choice in every way.
But Romo isn’t done yet. While he might be cleared to play in Week Eight, that doesn’t mean he’ll be truly healthy enough to play anyway. The Cowboys won’t really have to make an official call until Week 10 or 11 and by that time, the question itself will just be academic.
Dak Prescott's 155 pass attempts without an interception are the 2nd-most to start a career in NFL history behind Tom Brady's 162 (2000-01) pic.twitter.com/fOnpL9FY4H
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) October 10, 2016
The Cowboys have lucked into this situation before. Back in 2004 the team signed Romo as an undrafted free agent as pretty much a camp arm. He opened camp as the No. 4 quarterback behind Quincy Carter, newly acquired free agent Vinny Testeverde and No. 3 QB Drew Henson. Dallas had come off a 10-6 season the year before and had no real desire to shake up the boat. Then Carter failed a team-administered drug test and the Cowboys cut him, throwing the QB depth chart into turmoil.
With Carter on the street, Romo made the final cut. If Carter hadn’t failed that drug test there’s a real chance Tony Romo wouldn’t be in the NFL today. Instead, Testeverde and Henson both flamed out and Romo eventually took over for good, playing in six games and making the Pro Bowl.
Tony Romo's MRI came back looking good. Healing well as expected. Continuing to throw regularly
— Jason La Canfora (@JasonLaCanfora) October 10, 2016
Romo’s been on the other end of this so he knows what’s coming. The irony for him is, when he’s healthy, he’s playing the best quarterback of his life. The choking problems of the past are behind him and he’s as good as anyone in the NFL. It’s only now, at 36 years old, his body has betrayed him.
Romo still has a future in the NFL if he wants one. If released in the offseason, he’d be the hottest free agent on the market since Peyton Manning and can expect a similar courting process. Where would he end up? He could take his pick; the New York Jets, the Miami Dolphins, the Washington Redskins, the Chicago Bears, the Arizona Cardinals, the Denver Broncos, the San Francisco 49ers and the Los Angeles Rams would all make a play for him, trying to replicate Manning’s late-career success that ended with a Super Bowl ring.
#Cowboys QB Tony Romo knows what's up: "It's over." pic.twitter.com/FY8jkpv7Ze
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) October 9, 2016
Romo is going to be fine, either way. He’s made plenty of money and with his personality and pedigree an easy TV job awaits in his future. But it’s a future that lies beyond Dallas. That city and team belongs to Dak Prescott now.
