Tony Romo In Top 5? Not Really
USA Today recently released its 2012 NFL preview magazine and it contains a top 50 players list. Most of the men listed are not much of a surprise, but it was the ranking of one Tony Romo that had me raising an eyebrow.
Romo ranked number 23 on the list, check so far. But when you look closer, 4 other quarterbacks ranked ahead of him. That's right...Romo is a top 5 quarterback according to the magazine.
Now I am not a Romo hater, but I have never put him as a top 5 quarterback. That's for QB's who win! If not a Super Bowl then a few playoff games. Romo has done neither.
Romo is a top 10 QB...NOT top 5. The quarterbacks ahead of him: Green Bays Aaron Rodgers, New Orleans Drew Brees, New England's Tom Brady and New York's Eli Manning. All of them have Super Bowl trophies. Romo hasn't even come close.
Statistically he is right there with them. But last year his team finished 8-8 and he was instrumental in losing at least 2 of those games. I think he probably is to blame for the loss to Arizona as well. Each of the quarterbacks ahead of him went to the playoffs. Two of them played in the Super Bowl.
Even though Peyton Manning did not play a snap last year and has a new team, he still is a top 5 quarterbacks until proven otherwise. Most everyone in the league would take him over Romo right now because of what he has accomplished. I certainly would and I think deep down, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones would too given an option.
Romo's peers don't think he is anywhere near the top of the heap. The list of top 100 players has him listed at number 91, just 4 spots ahead of the Jets BACKUP quarterback Tim Tebow. He is behind guys like Joe Flacco of Baltimore and Phillip Rivers of San Diego. So what did Romo do last year to jump ahead of these guys.
The answer is little. While he did have his best year statistically, he did nothing to solidify himself as top leader in the league. The man he is often compared to, Eli Manning, won his SECOND Super Bowl and finally deserves to be listed as one of the best, NOT Romo.
At the end of a game with 2 minutes to go, team down by 4, needing a touchdown, is Romo the guy you want with the ball? Or is a guy like Ben Roethlisberger, who doesn't have the same stats, has won two Super Bowl titles and taken his team to a third.
Can Romo win a title: YES. Will he: that remains to be seen. But I do know he is NOT a top 5 quarterback, until he does what top 5 quarterbacks do, WIN A SUPER BOWL. And the window for that, like Jones accurately pointed out, is closing.
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