Dallas Cowboys: Why Tiger Woods Should Scare Fans
Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo limped through this past season despite posting his best statistical season in the NFL. While he is getting further and further away from the December 2013 back surgery to repair a herniated disc, a look at the professional golf tour should remind fans of a potential damning reality.
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PGA stud and perhaps the greatest golfer of all-time Tiger Woods is struggling with his back injury since he underwent back surgery last March. He has had to take time off and withdraw from two tournaments after returning only three months post surgery. While Romo participated in camp eight months after surgery, he didn’t look the same until about a month into the regular season.
More troubling is that Woods expressed that he and Romo had the exact same surgery. In fact, the two even struck conversation about it. Romo has looked ginger and handicapped at times since his surgery. Woods limping his way around and struggling to play at a competitive level is a threatening reminder that Dallas’ quarterback is never too far away from the same fate.
"Tony Romo had the exact same procedure I did. I talked to him a lot about it because he was in a lot of pain,” Woods wrote. “He just couldn’t function anymore” via CBSsports.com"
Although Cowboys fans would like to think that golf is different than football, the truth remains that Romo is still in danger. He fractured two transverse process bones in his back against the Arizona Cardinals this season, which obviously does no good on an ailing back.
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Furthermore, a back can flare up at any time. Even the most simple movement can cause a spasm. The combination of running and torque from passing, combined with 300-pound lineman trying to hurt, is more than enough to hurt a back again. Woods, playing a less physical sport and clearly in better physical condition than Romo, is struggling to regain his form.
The hope for Cowboys fans lies in that Romo was able to avoid a re-injury to the disc this season, and he will now have eight more months to strengthen his core and surrounding muscles to protect his back. Also, the strong running game and offensive line have certainly aided in the quarterback doing a lot less than in previous seasons. That formula will transition Romo into the remaining years of his career.
Woods at 39 years old is still four years older than Romo who will be 35 at the start of next season. Hopefully those four years are enough to keep number 9’s back in good enough condition for this team to compete for at least two more seasons. However, every time Tiger Woods grabs his back after a harmless golf swing, the Cowboys fan inside me knows that Romo’s back likely has a shelf life on it as well.