Dallas Cowboys need to revisit history at quarterback

The year was 2006.

Coming off of a 9-7 season in which the Dallas Cowboys did not make the playoffs solely because six other NFC teams won ten or more games, the roster was poised to be a contender for years.

There was just one problem…

The Cowboys biggest weakness was a washed up veteran at the game’s most important position.

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After six weeks of spinning their wheels, going 3-3 with losses to the Philadelphia Eagles and New York Giants already in the books, head coach Bill Parcells changed things up, going with a young, undrafted no-name at quarterback.

His name was Tony Romo. Romo just happened to lead the team to six wins in their last nine games and a playoff berth. The rest is history.

Now, almost ten years later the Dallas Cowboys have a roster stacked with talent and are poised to be a contender for years.

The biggest problem is that Dallas continues to go with washed up veterans at the game’s most important position while Romo is on the mend instead of a young, undrafted no-name at quarterback currently on the roster.

Apparently, the Jones/Garrett triumvirate isn’t too keen on franchise history.

Five straight losses, three with Brandon Weeden and two with Matt Cassel have all but doomed this season for the Cowboys. In those five games, the one consistent factor has been less than stellar quarterback play.

Week 3. Weeden is given the gift of an actual running game for the first time all season as the Cowboys race out to 21-7 lead. He then proceeds to make an incredibly dumb decision, resulting in a momentum-turning interception. From that point on, Atlanta outscores the Cowboys 32-7 as Dallas turns a double-digit lead into a double-digit loss.

Weeden’s numbers: 22/26 for 232 yards, 0 touchdowns and that one moronic interception.

Week 4. Dallas goes on the road and loses to a winless team in Weeden’s best performance by far. The numbers? 16/26 for 246 yards, one touchdown and no interceptions. If that’s his ceiling, that tells you all you need to know.

Week 5. The Cowboys get a visit from the dominant football machine known as the New England Patriots. Weeden fails to put up any points against a defense that is average at best, going 26 for 39 for 187 yards and an interception. That performance led to the end of his run, bring on Matt Cassel.

Week 7. Coming off a bye, Dallas has a chance to make a statement against the division leading Giants. The Cowboys defense does their part, allowing just one touchdown but watch as Cassel throws three picks and loses another winnable game for Dallas.

Cassel’s numbers: 17/27 for 227 yards, one touchdown and three interceptions.

Sunday. Cassel is once again given an amazing defensive performance as support. Unfortunately, the only touchdown in the game is scored by the opposing team, even though the defense gives him the gift of a turnover putting the ball inside the 20, late in the game.

Cassel goes 13 for 25 for 97 yards and takes a mind-numbing sack on the final drive to kill any chance of a comeback win. Only six of those 13 completions went to a wide receiver, the longest of which went for just 15 yards.

So, in five weeks, “Dallas QB” has thrown for less than seven yards per attempt, 989 yards in total, two touchdowns and five interceptions. That passer rating would best only Tennessee’s Zack Mettenberger and free agent Ryan Mallett.

It’s time for a change.

Yep, that’s right. An undrafted, untested guy with zero starts in his career may just be the savior the Cowboys need. They need to turn to Kellen Moore.

For one, it worked nine years ago. Secondly, Moore’s collegiate numbers and successes far exceed anything Weeden or Cassel did. Moore led Boise State to a record of 50-3 while Weeden went 41-11 at Oklahoma State and Cassel never started at USC. Moore also had a better completion percentage, over 5,000 yards, 67 more touchdowns and just one less interception than Weeden.

Another advantage would be that it would make it almost impossible for the Eagles to prepare with absolutely no tape available to plan for. If Dallas was to win next week with Moore, it’s not far fetched to believe that the emotional boost a win would provide could tide them over into the following week against Tampa Bay. Lastly, the other two options have been five chances and they are 0 for 5.

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If Moore fails, so be it, at least you turned over every rock. Does anyone at all have any confidence that either Cassel or Weeden can lead Dallas to victory at this point?

Besides, if it works, maybe you find Romo’s successor and don’t have to use a future draft pick to do so.

The Cowboys cannot afford to lose another game while they wait for Romo’s return. If Dallas has any designs on saving their season, it’s time to revisit history.

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