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Not sure if I missed it previously, but this is the first I've seen reported that the Jones boys were lobbying to go back to Romo
Benching Tony Romo is Jason Garrett's defining moment as Cowboys coach
Apr 14, 2017
Jean-Jacques Taylor
ESPN Staff Writer
FRISCO, Texas -- Too many of y'all have let coach Jason Garrett's easy smile fool you. You've bought into the false narrative that Garrett is a puppet, doing Jerry Jones' bidding because he's thrilled just to coach the Dallas Cowboys.
Well, he showed us in November that's not the case when he made the best decision he has made in his six-plus seasons as head coach, even if it created a rift between Garrett and his friend Tony Romo.
It was also the most difficult decision of his tenure.
Garrett showed us he could traipse all over the country with Romo, going to college basketball games and studying winning habits from folks like Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski, and yet still execute the kind of ruthless decisions every NFL head coach must ultimately make if he's going to thrive.
That’s the only way to describe Garrett's decision to keep playing rookie Dak Prescott even after Romo -- who decided last week to leave the NFL for CBS -- recovered from a compression fracture in his back suffered during preseason.
It’s too easy to say benching Romo, a starter for a decade, is what Garrett should’ve done because it was best for the team.
And it doesn’t matter that Jimmy Johnson started Steve Beuerlein instead of Troy Aikman in both of the Cowboys’ playoff games in 1991 after Beuerlein went 4-0 for the injured Aikman to end the season. Nor does it matter that New England coach Bill Belichick benched former No. 1 overall pick Drew Bledsoe in 2001 for Tom Brady.
None of those coaches and quarterbacks had the relationship Garrett and Romo shared. They weren’t boys, ride-or-die partners, if you will.
It’s easy to understand why Romo felt betrayed by Garrett’s decision. After all, Garrett was named offensive coordinator in 2007 after two years as Miami Dolphins quarterbacks coach.
Romo’s success played a large role in Garrett’s becoming Cowboys head coach after Wade Phillips was fired midway through the 2010 season. You’re naive if you think Jones didn’t seek Romo’s blessing before hiring Garrett, especially after the disaster that occurred when he hired Chan Gailey in 1998 and Aikman hated his offense, leading to Gailey's firing after two seasons.
Romo’s performances early in his career helped Garrett become one of the NFL’s highest-paid assistants at $3.5 million per season, during a stretch when Garrett turned down head-coaching opportunities with the Atlanta Falcons, Baltimore Ravens and then-St. Louis Rams.
And when he was in the final year of his contract in 2014, Romo passed for 3,705 yards with 34 touchdowns and nine interceptions, which undoubtedly factored into Jones’ signing of Garrett to a new five-year, $30 million deal.
Garrett, though, is forever preaching the importance of the team and the meritocracy that goes into building one. There’s no way Garrett could preach the team, the team, the team every day for years and then replace a quarterback who had won nine consecutive starts and played virtually flawless football.
Jerry Jones and vice president Stephen Jones lobbied hard for Romo, but Garrett made the difficult choice: He benched his boy.
Then Garrett told Romo he couldn’t compete with Prescott for the job. Finally, Garrett told Romo he needed to accept his new role, and Romo did.
At that moment, Garrett had to know Romo’s time in Dallas was going to end as soon as the season did. Romo still believed he could play, which should surprise no one, and he had too much pride to wear a baseball cap and hold a clipboard for any longer than absolutely necessary.
The easy decision -- one a puppet would’ve made -- would’ve been to move Romo into the starting lineup as soon as he was healthy.
Few would’ve scrutinized or second-guessed the decision to put a four-time Pro Bowl quarterback with more than 34,000 career passing yards back under center. If Romo suffered another injury, Garrett could bring back Prescott and there would be zero criticism.
But Garrett, like so many of his players, believed the Cowboys were in the midst of a special kind of season, so he went with Prescott.
At that moment, Garrett opened himself up to every criticism imaginable if the Cowboys didn’t ultimately win the Super Bowl.
But he also earned the team’s respect. Most players knew about his fondness for Romo and the depth of their relationship.
They knew how difficult that decision must’ve been, and they viewed it as tangible evidence that Garrett thought the Cowboys had a chance to make a deep playoff run with Prescott.
Green Bay beat Dallas in the divisional round, and Garrett will face considerable criticism in 2017 if Prescott struggles at all.
Still, Garrett made the correct decision, even if it drove a wedge between two close friends.
Benching Tony Romo is Jason Garrett's defining moment as Cowboys coach
Apr 14, 2017
Jean-Jacques Taylor
ESPN Staff Writer
FRISCO, Texas -- Too many of y'all have let coach Jason Garrett's easy smile fool you. You've bought into the false narrative that Garrett is a puppet, doing Jerry Jones' bidding because he's thrilled just to coach the Dallas Cowboys.
Well, he showed us in November that's not the case when he made the best decision he has made in his six-plus seasons as head coach, even if it created a rift between Garrett and his friend Tony Romo.
It was also the most difficult decision of his tenure.
Garrett showed us he could traipse all over the country with Romo, going to college basketball games and studying winning habits from folks like Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski, and yet still execute the kind of ruthless decisions every NFL head coach must ultimately make if he's going to thrive.
That’s the only way to describe Garrett's decision to keep playing rookie Dak Prescott even after Romo -- who decided last week to leave the NFL for CBS -- recovered from a compression fracture in his back suffered during preseason.
It’s too easy to say benching Romo, a starter for a decade, is what Garrett should’ve done because it was best for the team.
And it doesn’t matter that Jimmy Johnson started Steve Beuerlein instead of Troy Aikman in both of the Cowboys’ playoff games in 1991 after Beuerlein went 4-0 for the injured Aikman to end the season. Nor does it matter that New England coach Bill Belichick benched former No. 1 overall pick Drew Bledsoe in 2001 for Tom Brady.
None of those coaches and quarterbacks had the relationship Garrett and Romo shared. They weren’t boys, ride-or-die partners, if you will.
It’s easy to understand why Romo felt betrayed by Garrett’s decision. After all, Garrett was named offensive coordinator in 2007 after two years as Miami Dolphins quarterbacks coach.
Romo’s success played a large role in Garrett’s becoming Cowboys head coach after Wade Phillips was fired midway through the 2010 season. You’re naive if you think Jones didn’t seek Romo’s blessing before hiring Garrett, especially after the disaster that occurred when he hired Chan Gailey in 1998 and Aikman hated his offense, leading to Gailey's firing after two seasons.
Romo’s performances early in his career helped Garrett become one of the NFL’s highest-paid assistants at $3.5 million per season, during a stretch when Garrett turned down head-coaching opportunities with the Atlanta Falcons, Baltimore Ravens and then-St. Louis Rams.
And when he was in the final year of his contract in 2014, Romo passed for 3,705 yards with 34 touchdowns and nine interceptions, which undoubtedly factored into Jones’ signing of Garrett to a new five-year, $30 million deal.
Garrett, though, is forever preaching the importance of the team and the meritocracy that goes into building one. There’s no way Garrett could preach the team, the team, the team every day for years and then replace a quarterback who had won nine consecutive starts and played virtually flawless football.
Jerry Jones and vice president Stephen Jones lobbied hard for Romo, but Garrett made the difficult choice: He benched his boy.
Then Garrett told Romo he couldn’t compete with Prescott for the job. Finally, Garrett told Romo he needed to accept his new role, and Romo did.
At that moment, Garrett had to know Romo’s time in Dallas was going to end as soon as the season did. Romo still believed he could play, which should surprise no one, and he had too much pride to wear a baseball cap and hold a clipboard for any longer than absolutely necessary.
The easy decision -- one a puppet would’ve made -- would’ve been to move Romo into the starting lineup as soon as he was healthy.
Few would’ve scrutinized or second-guessed the decision to put a four-time Pro Bowl quarterback with more than 34,000 career passing yards back under center. If Romo suffered another injury, Garrett could bring back Prescott and there would be zero criticism.
But Garrett, like so many of his players, believed the Cowboys were in the midst of a special kind of season, so he went with Prescott.
At that moment, Garrett opened himself up to every criticism imaginable if the Cowboys didn’t ultimately win the Super Bowl.
But he also earned the team’s respect. Most players knew about his fondness for Romo and the depth of their relationship.
They knew how difficult that decision must’ve been, and they viewed it as tangible evidence that Garrett thought the Cowboys had a chance to make a deep playoff run with Prescott.
Green Bay beat Dallas in the divisional round, and Garrett will face considerable criticism in 2017 if Prescott struggles at all.
Still, Garrett made the correct decision, even if it drove a wedge between two close friends.
