Thank you, Tony Romo
There’s something every Cowboys fan should be doing instead of counting their Super Bowl eggs before they’ve hatched. Thank Tony Romo.
After Romo’s press conference ceding the starting job to Dak Prescott, the response from most of Cowboys Nation has been a reserved acknowledgement of Tony’s class. While it would seem the Cowboys have found their quarterback of the future for lack of trying, let’s not be too quick to make Tony Romo the quarterback of the past. He’s an ace in the hole for the rest of the season should Dak falter or suffer an injury, first of all, and if he never takes another meaningful snap as a Cowboy again, he’s owed every bit of compassion and gratitude we can muster. Something like this:
Tony — can I call you Tony? OK, cool. I should’ve known that; you’ve always been so easy-going. Anyway, Tony, these last 10 years or so sure have been something, huh? I can say that you endeared yourself to me before you ever took your first regular season snap in that Monday night game against the Giants. You emerged in an era for Cowboys fans that was defined by exasperated scrutiny. We scoured pre-season games for years for any glimmer of hope that the team might actually return to its winning ways. Then you came along.
Any fan worth their salt was vocal in support of you as we watched Drew Bledsoe struggle in the twilight of his career. We advocated for you to take over the team — you were young and confident and more mobile. Sorry… I didn’t mean for that to sound like a “things come full circle” type thing. My point is that you appeared on the scene as a shiny beacon of hope, and to some of us — like me — you’ve never stopped being that.
There have been ups and downs, sure — enough for some Cowboys fans to throw you under the bus at any opportunity and enough for some of us to defend you through thick and thin. And, you know, maybe you never got past the divisional round, but you did something more important.
You gave us our team back after Bledsoe, Testaverde, Henson, Carter, Hutchinson, Wright, Leaf, and Stoerner.
You’ve said yourself that Dak has earned the right to lead this team. It’s only fair. What isn’t fair is that for years you kept this team together, and it was never good enough to live up to the effort you put in. Now it finally is good enough to succeed without you, and you don’t get to see it through. Sports can be so cruel to the best of men.
But you will handle this the way you’ve handled your whole career. You’ll do the right thing, say the right things, and carry on with an aw shucks attitude. You’ll be ready if called upon — just like you were in 2006. And… we love you for that. We thank you for that and all the other memories we didn’t thank you for before.
I don’t think your story in Dallas is over yet, but if it is, there will never be another #9. Thank you so much.
