His emotions were there on his face. All you had to do was watch him read the eloquent statement he’d prepared instead of taking questions from the media. Tony Romo didn’t need to answer to reporters because after making his nearly five-minute statement, no one in that room was questioning anything about Tony Romo. Not a damn thing.
With his words Tuesday Romo ended any and all quarterback controversy for the Dallas Cowboys. It is Dak Prescott’s time and he, Tony Romo, has his back.
To say the first half of the season has been emotional would be a huge understatement. Getting hurt when you feel like you have the best team you’ve ever had was a soul crushing moment for me. Then to learn it’s not three or four weeks, but 10 is another blow. Through it all you have a tremendous amount of guilt on having let your teammates, fans and organization down. After all, they were depending on you to bring them a championship. That’s what quarterbacks are supposed to do. That’s how we’re judged.
I loved that. I still do. But then here you are sidelined, without any real ability to help your teammates win on the field. That’s when you’re forced to come face-to-face with what’s happening. Seasons are fleeting. Games become more precious. Chances for success diminish. Your potential successor has arrived. Injured two years in a row and now in the mid 30s, the press is whispering. Everyone has doubts. You’ve spent your career working to get here. Now we have to start all over.
You almost feel like an outsider. Coaches are still sympathetic, but they still have to coach. And you’re not there. It’s a dark place. Probably the darkest it’s ever been. You’re sad and down and out and you ask yourself why did this have to happen. It’s in this moment you find out who you really are and what you’re really about. You see football is a meritocracy. You aren’t handed anything. You earn everything, every single day. Over and over again, you have to prove it. That’s the way that the NFL, that’s the way that football works.
A great example of this is Dak Prescott and what he’s done. He’s earned the right to be our quarterback. As hard as that is for me say, he’s earned that right. He’s guided our team to an 8-1 record and that’s hard to do. If you think for a second that I don’t want to be out there, then you’ve probably never felt the pure ecstasy of competing and winning. That hasn’t left me. In fact, it may burn now more than ever.
It’s not always easy to watch. I think anyone that’s ever been in this position understands that. What is clear is that I was that kid once, stepping in and having to prove yourself. I remember that feeling like it was yesterday. It really is an incredible time in your life. And if I remember one thing from back then, it’s the people that helped me along when I was young. If I can be that to Dak, and I’ve tried to be and I will be going forward.
I think you all know that something magical is happening to our team. I’m not going to allow this situation to negatively affect Dak or this football team by becoming a constant distraction. I think Dak knows that I have his back. And I know that he has mine. Ultimately it’s about the team. It’s what we’ve preached our entire lives.
I can remember when I was kid starting out wanting to be part of something bigger than myself. For every high school kid out there or college player, there’s greatness in being the kind of teammate that truly wants to be part of a team. Everyone wants to be the reason we’re wining or losing. Every single one of us wants to be that person. But there are special moments that come from a shared commitment, to play your role while doing it together. That’s what you remember. Not your stats or your prestige, but the relationships and the achievement that you created with your group. It’s hard to do, but there’s great joy in that.
And all the while your desire burns to be the best you’ve ever been. You can be both. I’ve figured that out in this process. It’s what separates sports from everything else. It’s why we love it. It’s why we trust it. It’s why I still want to play and compete.
Lastly, I just want to leave you with something I’ve learned in this process as well. I feel like we have two enemies. One is the man across from you. The second is the man inside of you. I think once you control the one inside of you, the one across from you really doesn’t matter. I think that’s what we’re all trying to do.
I’ve noticed Romo on the sideline during the Cowboys’ streak with Prescott, either during the live games or NFL Films’ highlights on Inside the NFL. Romo is always working with Prescott when he’s on the bench, telling him what to look for on the next possession. I’m sure Prescott would tell you today that Romo has been his best gameday coach. It’s showed up on the field and when Prescott tossed a go-ahead touchdown late in the fourth quarter against the Pittsburgh Steelers Sunday, the sideline camera caught Romo smiling and saying to himself, “It’s his time.”
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Barring more health issues, it’s still Tony Romo’s time too. He won’t be on the Cowboys’ roster in 2017 and he’s made peace with that. He will also be the biggest, most sought after free agent since Peyton Manning in 2012. And don’t be surprised if John Elway of the Denver Broncos isn’t the first general manager on Romo’s phone come January. Paxton Lynch can sit on the bench for a few more years because, as Dak Prescott will freely tell him, Tony Romo will have his back too.
For Romo, it’s about heart and the team. And, after Tuesday, no one is questioning that.
