Losing Tony Romo for the rest of the season is the worst possible thing that could have happened to the Dallas Cowboys.
My reaction to the news can only be explained by the gifs below.
Romo has a herniated disk that will require surgery. Romo said he aggravated his sore back during the Cowboys’ comeback win over the Washington Redskins, but he didn’t think it would affect his ability to play in the virtual NFC East Championship game against the Philadelphia Eagles.
I don't think Romo will be able to play, despite Jason Garret's non-answer answer. No one can question Romo's toughness. He's proven himself many times before, including playing with a punctured lung. Romo's grit aside, expecting him to play with a herniated disk that needs surgery is asking too much.
However, I suspect Romo’s injury stems from having to put the Cowboys on his back.
The Cowboys drop back to pass 66 percent of the time, the fifth most in the NFL. Romo gets more grief than he should, even with his well-documented December struggles and penchant for critical mistakes in crucial moments of games. He has 31 touchdown passes, to just 10 interceptions on the year. That’s the third best ratio in the NFL, among QBs that qualify. He was a lock to eclipse the 4,000-yard mark, as he was at 3,828 yards for the season.
Without Romo, Dallas wins three of four games. Romo’s offensive line isn’t great at pass protection, and without Romo’s ability to buy time, the line would give up more sacks.
For all the Cowboy fans that love to blame Romo for the Cowboys problems, they are about to find out how bad this team can be without Romo. Kyle Orton is a serviceable backup, but nothing more. This is the same quarterback who lost his job to Tim Tebow.
Unless Orton and the Cowboys pull a miracle, thus proving the Ewing Theory, Dallas is in for a rough Sunday night.
While the loss of Romo cripples the Cowboys’ playoff hopes, it might just save Jason Garrett’s job. If Dallas had lost to the Eagles with Romo, I don’t think Jerry Jones would bring Garrett back for another year. However, Jerry might spare Garrett the ax without Romo.
If Romo can’t play, the Cowboys will need a Christmas Miracle to make it to the playoffs.
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