The ship is going to sail on Tony Romo someday. Maybe in the not so distant future, but that day isn’t today. Not with a broken back. Not even if today’s fracture turns into tomorrow’s broken season.
But let’s take this moment and start thinking seriously about life after Romo. Let’s consider the return the Cowboys are getting on his monster six-year, $108 million contract extension. And let’s take a long, deep breath and ask two tough questions: Just because Tony Romo might be back in six weeks, does that mean he has to be given the starting job back? If Dak Prescott carries his superb preseason into late October, should he be unplugged for a healthy Romo regardless of performance?
It’s early. And I have no idea what Prescott is going to look like in the regular season. In two weeks, opponents are going to start throwing disguised defenses at him. Defensive coordinators are going to start grinding every frame of tape and figuring out his flaws. And eventually, perfect Dak Prescott is going to suffer for it.
But what if regular season Dak Prescott is good? What if the past three weeks are an indicator of something bigger? What if Prescott is Russell Wilson, a guy who wasn’t supposed to be ready as a rookie but cemented his starting spot anyway. This happens sometimes. History has shown us that good veteran quarterbacks can go down and open doors to franchise-changing moments.
Remember, a Drew Bledsoe injury gave the NFL a 24-year-old, seemingly-not-ready Tom Brady. A torn Trent Green ACL birthed the phrase, “Who the hell is Kurt Warner?” I’m not saying Prescott is either of those guys but suggesting Brady could unseat Bledsoe or Warner could permanently replace Green sounded just as ridiculous as a rookie Prescott taking over for Romo. Actually, Prescott might be a less crazy notion considering his preseason play and Romo’s crumbling health.
There is a palpable cringe factor when you hear someone say, “Prescott should be given an opportunity to keep Tony Romo’s job.” Why? Well, consider the facts. Romo’s contract makes him virtually uncuttable through 2017, a strong financial incentive to keep him in the starting spot. Romo played at MVP-worthy levels in 2014, so his peak success is not far behind him. And he is beloved by team owner Jerry Jones, so much so that Jones has gone through a massive spate of frustration with these injuries and yet still doubled-down on Romo being the unquestioned leader of the franchise.
All of those factors are powerful when it comes to a quarterback having unassailable job security. But how long can that wall of logic hold before someone else breaches it? Romo’s fragile health keeps opening the door for someone else. What happens when a capable challenger finally walks through it?
The Cowboys may be on the doorstep of finally having to grapple with that question. Prescott appears to be displaying some qualities that suggest he’s the real deal after three preseason games. Yes, it’s preseason. We all keep repeating that. But there are some intangibles that translate. He has never looked out of control. He has never looked overwhelmed. He has navigated the pocket with calm. He has used his feet to extend plays at the appropriate times. And he has stood in and taken some hits to make plays.
One play against the Seattle Seahawks summed up Prescott’s entire preseason demeanor. It came when Seahawks defensive end Frank Clark breached the middle of the line and had an almost unabated shot at Prescott. This is the kind of breakdown – a fast rupture up the middle of the pocket – that folds up all but elite NFL quarterbacks. It should have caused Prescott to panic. Instead, he kept his eyes downfield until the last moment and stepped into his throw, zinging a completion just as Clark got to him.
That’s uncharacteristic. And while mediocre quarterbacks can make that play every now and then, it has to be taken in context of a preseason where Prescott has displayed similar poise throughout. As much as critics have hovered for the inevitable run of mistakes, Prescott has never caved.
Does that mean he’s better than Romo? Absolutely not. But does it mean that Dallas may have found someone to be excited about? Definitely. Now it’s on Prescott to prove that three preseason games are indeed indicative of what he can be. And should he accomplish that, it’s on the Cowboys to consider whether it’s a wise move to pull back on Prescott in late October and go back to Romo.
Maybe this won’t be an issue. Maybe Prescott will flail and struggle and look like a player who needs years of development. But he hasn’t looked like that player yet. And maybe he won’t in a month, either.
That could force the Dallas brain trust into an interesting discussion. One where the choices are defaulting to Romo as the starter and hoping (yet again) for different results, or looking at Prescott and seeing him as the centerpiece in a next-decade foundation with Ezekiel Elliott, La’el Collins and Byron Jones.
Either way, Romo won’t be around forever. It’s time to start measuring what that means in the next weeks and months, not years.
No comments:
Post a Comment