Dallas Cowboys fans still irrational about Tony Romo

With a new NFL season approaching, it’s time for Dallas Cowboys fans to move on and let go of quarterback Tony Romo as any part of the present or future.

The last time that Tony Romo played a full game for the Dallas Cowboys was Thanksgiving day of 2015. In case you forgot, two pick sixes and just 106 yards led to a 33-14 Cowboys loss.

I don’t bring this up to take shots at Romo. I bring this up because if you happen to be on social media and read the Romo threads, you might think his last performance had a far different result.

Before we go any further, I feel it’s necessary to say the following statement.

I greatly appreciate everything that Tony Romo did for the Dallas Cowboys. For a large part of nine seasons, he was dynamic, exciting and everything you could ask for in a quarterback.

To be a fan of the Cowboys pre-Romo would only intensify those feelings.

In between Troy Aikman‘s last pass and Romo’s first, the list of quarterbacks for this franchise is an embarrassment. That’s the biggest reason Dallas was on the losing end of 50 games over five and a half seasons.

With that out of the way, all things come to an end at some point. Last season was the end of Tony Romo as the quarterback of the Cowboys. It’s time to move on. It’s time to let go.

Unfortunately, that task is not so easy for a lot of fans of this team.

Some of the ideas that Cowboys fans have related to Romo are almost as embarrassing as that list of quarterbacks from 2001-2006.

I have read many tweets directed at team insider’s asking about offering Dak Prescott in a trade to obtain the number one overall draft pick in 2017.

Think about that for a moment.

You want to jettison a rookie Pro-Bowl quarterback who won 13 games in his first year to roll the dice on a draft pick? That makes no sense at all. The idea here is that Dallas still has Romo under contract, so they could flip Prescott into another player to address needs on the defense.

Never mind that Romo is likely incapable of every playing a full season again. Forget that Prescott will make just over $1M in the next two years while Romo would make almost $40M.

As the cherry on top of this insane sundae, let me remind you of this truth. Four of the last seven first overall picks have been underperforming at best. Some have been out right mistakes.

No, thank you.

Then, there are those who want an open competition next year to allow Romo a fair chance to earn his spot back.

The flaw in this thought process is simple to point out as well. Aside from Romo, there are five other quarterbacks, age 35 or older, that were full time starters in 2016.

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Tom Brady played seven straight seasons without missing a game prior to his four game suspension in 2016. Drew Brees has missed two games since 2009. Eli Manning has not missed a game since 2004. Philip Rivers has not missed a game since 2006.

If you want to keep your job into your late 30’s, winning a Super Bowl ring certainly helps. The four guys above have combined for five rings in the last decade. Being available, though, is more helpful as they have combined to miss just six games since 2009.

Not counting last year, Romo had missed 24 games in that same time span by himself.

When you’re not available, someone else is. Dallas finally found that someone else in 2016.

Lastly, there are those who want the organization to control where Tony Romo plays next. This is either because they don’t want to play against him or because they want him to win a ring.

If I had to choose either of these options, I would certainly pick the first. The reason would not be out of fear of losing to a Romo-led team. The reason is that I would not want to see him get hurt at the hands of a Dallas Cowboys defense.

Maybe I am too old school but I am not rooting for any player without a Star on their helmet to win a Super Bowl.

Otherwise, if the Dallas Cowboys can get anything of value for Romo in a trade, I could not care less which team he plays for in 2017. You shouldn’t either.

Next: Ranking Tony Romo’s Top 5 Dallas Cowboys Games

Make your peace with the fact that he is no longer part of this team’s present or future however you choose. Celebrate the good times that once were but stop letting it cloud your views of what is real.

Tony Romo is not doing that and neither should you.

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