Romo's real and so are Cowboys' playoff chances
Nov. 19, 2006
By Pete Prisco
CBS SportsLine.com Senior Writer
DALLAS -- They met at midfield after the game, the gunslinger young quarterback with all of four career starts on his resume shaking the hand of the veteran superstar passer on the other team, who also happens to be the face of the NFL.
When Tony Romo reached to shake the hand of Peyton Manning, shortly after Romo's Dallas Cowboys beat Manning's Indianapolis Colts 21-14, the three-time MVP offered Romo a few kind words.
"You're a good player," Manning told him.
"It's meaningful to me," Romo said later.
Manning knows quarterbacks, so it should be. And on this one, he is dead on.
Romo is no journeyman holding the seat until the next guy comes along. He's going to be the Dallas Cowboys quarterback for a long time.
For some, the story on this day might be the Cowboys ending the Colts chance of an unbeaten season, but for the 6-4 Cowboys it's a victory that gives them plenty of hope that, maybe, they just might meet this same team again in Miami. In February. In the Super Bowl.
The Cowboys defense will get plenty of credit for the victory, and rightfully so when you force four Colts turnovers, but the belief here is they would not have won were it not for Romo's fourth-quarter magic.
He went 6-for-6 for 102 yards in the quarter, including a key third-down slant pass to Terry Glenn with just more than two minutes remaining in the game for a 7-yard gain and a first down. It was a slant pass that prevented Manning the chance to work some more of his fourth-quarter magic.
"Thank goodness the ball didn't go back in Peyton's hand," Cowboys coach Bill Parcells said.
For most of the game, the Cowboys stuck to a plan that emphasized running the ball and quick, short throws. The plan smelled of a coach trying to protect his young quarterback. But when playing the Colts, the quarterback eventually has to make plays with his arm.
There have been plenty of teams who came at the Colts with a power run game, only to lose because they couldn't make the plays in the passing game. Earlier this season, the Jaguars pounded the Colts with the run, rushing for 191 yards, but lost because they couldn’t make the plays in the air.
Romo had to be set free -- somewhat anyway.
He was 9-of-12 for 96 yards in the first half, but 28 of that came on one completion. In the third quarter he was 4-for-5 with his longest completion 11 yards. The Cowboys trailed 7-0 at the half, and tied it at 7 on a 39-yard interception return for a touchdown by linebacker Kevin Burnett on the opening drive of the second half. That touchdown helped take some of the heat off Romo and the offense.
But the Colts answered with a 4-yard touchdown pass from Manning to tight end Dallas Clark making it 14-7 with 5:14 left in the third quarter, which meant the Cowboys had to get more aggressive on offense.
The shackles came off.
After the Cowboys tied the score at 14 -- thanks mainly to Julius Jones' running -- it was Romo time.
He made some timely throws on the drive that secured the winning score, including successive throws of 19 and 33 yards to Glenn, setting up Marion Barber's 1-yard touchdown run. Later he made a clutch 22-yard throw to rookie tight end Anthony Fasano to help seal the game before the pass to Glenn officially wrapped it up.
"He did a good job," Parcells said. "My expectations of him are higher probably than yours are because you have not seen as much of him. He did a good job of keeping his poise, his head in the game, and the players respond to him well."
Romo started the season on the bench, yet he was a player many close to the Cowboys insisted would be the difference maker in their season -- if given the chance. That’s pretty big stuff for a guy who hadn't thrown a pass in an NFL game. Former Cowboys offensive coordinator Sean Payton, who is now the Saints head coach, told me in training camp that Romo would be a big-time quarterback.
I doubted him.
Not anymore.
The fourth-year player from Eastern Illinois seems to have the "it" factor you want from the quarterback position. If he throws an interception, it doesn't seem to faze him. He made an awful throw on a first-half interception and Parcells insisted that Terrell Owens was open -- for what would have been a touchdown -- away from the play. He also lost a fumble on a sack in the second half.
"It's all part of the learning experience for him under the gun," Parcells said.
Romo is now 3-1 since taking the job from Drew Bledsoe. His ability to move around the pocket and make throws has helped the Dallas offense. Beating Manning will help Romo grow in confidence. As he does, you can bet the shackles will come off little by little, which they must do if the Cowboys are to be a real Super Bowl contender.
"Today we had a game plan going in and we stuck to it all day," Romo said. "It's tough sometimes because you stand back there in the pocket and sometimes you want to put the ball down the field a little more. But you've got to understand you just can't do it sometimes."
As the Cowboys move on this season, they can't let it stay that way. Romo deserves more. He's second in the league in passing efficiency to Manning and he seems to have a grasp of the passing game.
Sunday's game taught us a lot about the Cowboys. It showed that they have an opportunistic defense that can play with the best offenses in football. It also showed that Jones and Barber can run the ball. But more important than any of that is it taught us -- the doubters like me -- that Romo can win football games in the fourth quarter.
Good player? Manning was right on with that one, and as a result the Cowboys may be the top challenger to the Chicago Bears in the NFC.
By Pete Prisco
CBS SportsLine.com Senior Writer
DALLAS -- They met at midfield after the game, the gunslinger young quarterback with all of four career starts on his resume shaking the hand of the veteran superstar passer on the other team, who also happens to be the face of the NFL.
When Tony Romo reached to shake the hand of Peyton Manning, shortly after Romo's Dallas Cowboys beat Manning's Indianapolis Colts 21-14, the three-time MVP offered Romo a few kind words.
"You're a good player," Manning told him.
"It's meaningful to me," Romo said later.
Manning knows quarterbacks, so it should be. And on this one, he is dead on.
Romo is no journeyman holding the seat until the next guy comes along. He's going to be the Dallas Cowboys quarterback for a long time.
For some, the story on this day might be the Cowboys ending the Colts chance of an unbeaten season, but for the 6-4 Cowboys it's a victory that gives them plenty of hope that, maybe, they just might meet this same team again in Miami. In February. In the Super Bowl.
The Cowboys defense will get plenty of credit for the victory, and rightfully so when you force four Colts turnovers, but the belief here is they would not have won were it not for Romo's fourth-quarter magic.
He went 6-for-6 for 102 yards in the quarter, including a key third-down slant pass to Terry Glenn with just more than two minutes remaining in the game for a 7-yard gain and a first down. It was a slant pass that prevented Manning the chance to work some more of his fourth-quarter magic.
"Thank goodness the ball didn't go back in Peyton's hand," Cowboys coach Bill Parcells said.
For most of the game, the Cowboys stuck to a plan that emphasized running the ball and quick, short throws. The plan smelled of a coach trying to protect his young quarterback. But when playing the Colts, the quarterback eventually has to make plays with his arm.
There have been plenty of teams who came at the Colts with a power run game, only to lose because they couldn't make the plays in the passing game. Earlier this season, the Jaguars pounded the Colts with the run, rushing for 191 yards, but lost because they couldn’t make the plays in the air.
Romo had to be set free -- somewhat anyway.
He was 9-of-12 for 96 yards in the first half, but 28 of that came on one completion. In the third quarter he was 4-for-5 with his longest completion 11 yards. The Cowboys trailed 7-0 at the half, and tied it at 7 on a 39-yard interception return for a touchdown by linebacker Kevin Burnett on the opening drive of the second half. That touchdown helped take some of the heat off Romo and the offense.
But the Colts answered with a 4-yard touchdown pass from Manning to tight end Dallas Clark making it 14-7 with 5:14 left in the third quarter, which meant the Cowboys had to get more aggressive on offense.
The shackles came off.
After the Cowboys tied the score at 14 -- thanks mainly to Julius Jones' running -- it was Romo time.
He made some timely throws on the drive that secured the winning score, including successive throws of 19 and 33 yards to Glenn, setting up Marion Barber's 1-yard touchdown run. Later he made a clutch 22-yard throw to rookie tight end Anthony Fasano to help seal the game before the pass to Glenn officially wrapped it up.
"He did a good job," Parcells said. "My expectations of him are higher probably than yours are because you have not seen as much of him. He did a good job of keeping his poise, his head in the game, and the players respond to him well."
Romo started the season on the bench, yet he was a player many close to the Cowboys insisted would be the difference maker in their season -- if given the chance. That’s pretty big stuff for a guy who hadn't thrown a pass in an NFL game. Former Cowboys offensive coordinator Sean Payton, who is now the Saints head coach, told me in training camp that Romo would be a big-time quarterback.
I doubted him.
Not anymore.
The fourth-year player from Eastern Illinois seems to have the "it" factor you want from the quarterback position. If he throws an interception, it doesn't seem to faze him. He made an awful throw on a first-half interception and Parcells insisted that Terrell Owens was open -- for what would have been a touchdown -- away from the play. He also lost a fumble on a sack in the second half.
"It's all part of the learning experience for him under the gun," Parcells said.
Romo is now 3-1 since taking the job from Drew Bledsoe. His ability to move around the pocket and make throws has helped the Dallas offense. Beating Manning will help Romo grow in confidence. As he does, you can bet the shackles will come off little by little, which they must do if the Cowboys are to be a real Super Bowl contender.
"Today we had a game plan going in and we stuck to it all day," Romo said. "It's tough sometimes because you stand back there in the pocket and sometimes you want to put the ball down the field a little more. But you've got to understand you just can't do it sometimes."
As the Cowboys move on this season, they can't let it stay that way. Romo deserves more. He's second in the league in passing efficiency to Manning and he seems to have a grasp of the passing game.
Sunday's game taught us a lot about the Cowboys. It showed that they have an opportunistic defense that can play with the best offenses in football. It also showed that Jones and Barber can run the ball. But more important than any of that is it taught us -- the doubters like me -- that Romo can win football games in the fourth quarter.
Good player? Manning was right on with that one, and as a result the Cowboys may be the top challenger to the Chicago Bears in the NFC.
posted by The Gryphon at 10:47 PM
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