Romo Leads 'Ugly Baby' Cowboys To A Win
By Mike Fisher | @fishsports
MIAMI (105.3 THE FAN) - Jerry Jones is proud of his Cowboys for Sunday's Tony Romo-led 24-14 win at Miami. But he's not ready to enter it in a beauty pageant just yet.
These players, and me, and Coach Garrett and the other coaches – we'll always have this team,'' the owner said after Dallas' first win in eight weeks. "It's an ugly baby. But it's OUR baby. And we love it."
Jones especially loves it because on Sunday it matched the season-long vision he had for the 2015 Cowboys: Big stops from the enigmatic defensive duo of Greg Hardy and Rolando McClain. Running Back by Committee worked (even though the committee members keep changing.) Big catches from Dez Bryant, Jason Witten, Terrance Williams and anyone else the QB targeted. And most of all, magic from the quarterback -- Romodini -- even after missing two months with a broken collarbone.
"The No. 1 value in this game is that our fans can see the team that we thought we were going to be," Jones said. "We didn't dream we'd be playing as much without Romo, but that's the team that we thought we would be.
"We'll go one-by-one as to anything to do about playoffs, but my dream is for this team to show the fans … this is the team that we are.''
True. But this is also a 3-7 team, afloat in a sea of semi-contention mostly only because the rest of the NFC East is fully of hole-filled boats.
The Cowboys have their own holes, most prominently gaps created by soap-operatic controversy. Hardy is late for meetings. ... and his Greg-Tardiness becomes a national headline. Insignificant players are cut because they are, well, insignificant ... but somehow "Corey White'' becomes a national headline. Dez Bryant does virtually anything and yeah, national headlines.
So when Dez is asked about the status of the NFC East and the opportunity in the standings, he's able to kind of wink back a response by saying, "No. That's a distraction. A REAL distraction.''
But Dallas' fate really has -- in the Cowboys' minds, anyway -- changed on a dime.
That team that blew a lead against Atlanta and gave up a 100-yard kick return against New York and lost twice in overtime and couldn't score against Tampa?
That team isn't this team. Maybe.
The idea that all is lost isn't the way they're thinking. The idea that their coach has lost them isn't the way they're thinking, either. Funny thing: When Garrett takes them to New York a day in advance, as he did earlier this season so his team could bond on an emotional tour of Ground Zero, he's viewed as a leader. A few weeks later, he's viewed as fireable.
What, you think he lost his team in Tampa last week but found it in Miami this week?
Ridiculous.
Romo actually said the challenges of this NFL season, in a sense, "make it more enjoyable." He's got his own challenges, of course, with two interceptions (offset by his two TD passes, not to mention his early-game escape from the wrong end zone using a left-handed pass) and his rust and, oh yeah, Dallas has to play again on Thursday in Arlington against the undefeated Panthers.
"They're tough,'' Dez said. "Cam (Panthers QB Newton) is doin' his thing. We gotta have laser focus. And I think we will.''
When it was over, the win did a good job of showcasing what Romo means to the franchise. He is resilient in a way others aren't. He leads like others won't. And his ability to improvise and adapt erases mistakes like others can't. You needed only a few plays to see it. There was a left-handed pass out of the end zone that avoided a safety. There was a reverse pivot on third-and-long that turned another sack into a completion for a first down. There were many running lanes that remained open for a few seconds longer, if only because Miami's safeties couldn't afford to cheat against the run.
More than anything, there was Romo bouncing back from two interceptions and leading key scoring drives when the game was in the balance. That didn't happen with Weeden and Cassel. And the longer each failed in those moments, the harder it became to win in the past two months.
"[Tony] being back gives everybody that much more juice," Bryant said. "We're not trying to put that much pressure on Tony, but [he's] just showing how much he really means. Nothing against Brandon. Nothing against Matt. But we all know who our leader is."
So Romo is leading again, and Dallas is winning again. That's all Sunday means right now – that the franchise gets a momentary reprieve. Nothing more. It's still likely the team needs to run the table to get into the postseason. And there's a quick turnaround for a Thursday tilt against the undefeated Carolina Panthers. If Dallas wins that then, well, maybe it's time to take notice.
"We want to play like hell and play well against Carolina," Jones said. "The goal is to win. If we go do that and we have a big game there, I think somebody might say, 'You know, if they had [Romo all season], they probably were one of the top one or two teams in the league. That's where we want to try to get to."
That's how Jones still sees his beloved ugly baby that might still be a whole lot more. A team that could have been the best team in the NFL, or close to it, and maybe, just maybe, might still get there.
"It's a dream," Jones said, "but not a fantasy."
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