Romo, Campbell travel on diverse paths
By BRIAN HUNSICKER
bhunsicker@potomacnews.com
Thursday, November 15, 2007
ASHBURN -- Less than 20 games into their tenure as starting quarterbacks, Dallas' Tony Romo and Washington's Jason Campbell travel on divergent paths. It's a reversal for Romo, unheralded and undrafted out of Eastern Illinois, and Campbell, a first-round draft pick out of Auburn.
Both put in significant time on the sideline before getting their break. But since then, their experiences have been very different.
Romo is set to make his 20th start on Sunday against the Redskins and brings a 19-4 record into the game. In each of his past three games, he's completed better than 70 percent of his passes, including an 80-percent effort in a 38-17 win over Philadelphia. In eight of those 19 starts, he's thrown for at least 300 yards -- enough to put him third in team history in that statistic.
"He's got the ability to make plays that some other players don't make at that position. That separates him," Cowboys coach Wade Phillips said on Wednesday. "He's got a quick release, throws really well in the pocket. And once he moves around, gets out of the pocket, he's exceptional there."
Campbell has now been the starter for the equivalent of a full season: Sunday will be his 17th start and he holds a 7-9 record. He has yet to crack 300 yards, coming closest with 248 yards against Detroit. But in last week's loss to Philadelphia, Campbell took more control as Washington employed a no-huddle offense for several series against the Eagles.
"He's really come along. You can see the progression, you can see him getting better and better," Phillips said of Campbell. "It looks like when he gets in two-minute situations ... He's starting to handle the team well. Not only play well, but be able to handle the team well in those situations."
There are several caveats, however.
Romo, particularly this season, has not had to deal with the cadre of injuries to his unit. Campbell operates with half of his expected offensive line and a who's in, who's out lineup at wide receiver: Santana Moss's heel, Antwaan Randle El's ongoing hamstring issues, James Thrash's high ankle sprain and Brandon Lloyd's broken collarbone have caused (or will cause) each of those players to miss games or perform at less than full capacity. The Redskins have also had to deal with the varying effectiveness of the running game.
In each of Romo's starts, he's had receiver Terrell Owens, running back Julius Jones and tight end Jason Witten available.
"There's no real secret," Romo said. "We've got a good scheme and good players and you're just trying to get it in their hands and let them do all the work."
The Cowboys' and the Redskins' offensive philosophy also plays a difference. With the players to stretch the field, Dallas has no problem doing so. The Redskins' run-first belief cuts down on the chances Campbell has to throw -- let alone the chance he has to throw deep.
"It's a different style of offense," Campbell said. "They're more of a downfield ... offense, we're more of a run-oriented offense. So you're talking about two different quarterbacks in two different offenses."
bhunsicker@potomacnews.com
Thursday, November 15, 2007
ASHBURN -- Less than 20 games into their tenure as starting quarterbacks, Dallas' Tony Romo and Washington's Jason Campbell travel on divergent paths. It's a reversal for Romo, unheralded and undrafted out of Eastern Illinois, and Campbell, a first-round draft pick out of Auburn.
Both put in significant time on the sideline before getting their break. But since then, their experiences have been very different.
Romo is set to make his 20th start on Sunday against the Redskins and brings a 19-4 record into the game. In each of his past three games, he's completed better than 70 percent of his passes, including an 80-percent effort in a 38-17 win over Philadelphia. In eight of those 19 starts, he's thrown for at least 300 yards -- enough to put him third in team history in that statistic.
"He's got the ability to make plays that some other players don't make at that position. That separates him," Cowboys coach Wade Phillips said on Wednesday. "He's got a quick release, throws really well in the pocket. And once he moves around, gets out of the pocket, he's exceptional there."
Campbell has now been the starter for the equivalent of a full season: Sunday will be his 17th start and he holds a 7-9 record. He has yet to crack 300 yards, coming closest with 248 yards against Detroit. But in last week's loss to Philadelphia, Campbell took more control as Washington employed a no-huddle offense for several series against the Eagles.
"He's really come along. You can see the progression, you can see him getting better and better," Phillips said of Campbell. "It looks like when he gets in two-minute situations ... He's starting to handle the team well. Not only play well, but be able to handle the team well in those situations."
There are several caveats, however.
Romo, particularly this season, has not had to deal with the cadre of injuries to his unit. Campbell operates with half of his expected offensive line and a who's in, who's out lineup at wide receiver: Santana Moss's heel, Antwaan Randle El's ongoing hamstring issues, James Thrash's high ankle sprain and Brandon Lloyd's broken collarbone have caused (or will cause) each of those players to miss games or perform at less than full capacity. The Redskins have also had to deal with the varying effectiveness of the running game.
In each of Romo's starts, he's had receiver Terrell Owens, running back Julius Jones and tight end Jason Witten available.
"There's no real secret," Romo said. "We've got a good scheme and good players and you're just trying to get it in their hands and let them do all the work."
The Cowboys' and the Redskins' offensive philosophy also plays a difference. With the players to stretch the field, Dallas has no problem doing so. The Redskins' run-first belief cuts down on the chances Campbell has to throw -- let alone the chance he has to throw deep.
"It's a different style of offense," Campbell said. "They're more of a downfield ... offense, we're more of a run-oriented offense. So you're talking about two different quarterbacks in two different offenses."
posted by The Gryphon at 8:41 PM
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