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Column by DAVID MOORE / The Dallas Morning News
dmoore@dallasnews.com
IRVING – When the Cowboys bowed to the inevitable and placed Tony Romo on injured reserve Tuesday, few outside of the building asked why.
The question was why did it take so long?
The club's insistence on tabling this decision until the final 13 days of the regular season baffles most. An early exit from playoff contention and Jon Kitna's superlative performance seemed to make this a foregone conclusion.
The suggestion by interim coach Jason Garrett that a return was dangled like a psychological carrot to aid in Romo's rehabilitation is a partial explanation at best.
Jerry Jones clung to the hope that Romo would have a role in this second-half renaissance. He did not want his starting quarterback to be associated with a dreadful first half and have no hand in the team's improved play at the end.
That doesn't play well in the court of public opinion with a potential lockout on the horizon.
"The thing I stated to him was I hope to play well enough to get us back into some sort of playoff race so he could come back and play," Kitna said upon learning the job is his for the remainder of the season. "That was my intention all along.
"Obviously, that didn't happen."
Romo fractured his left clavicle when New York Giants linebacker Michael Boley drove him into the turf on Oct. 25. Surgery was ruled out because the location of the break did not lend itself to the insertion of a plate.
The best case scenario was that Romo would return for the final two games of the regular season. Jones said 12 days ago he felt that timetable was still realistic.
But the area around the break remains sensitive. Romo still has not been cleared to practice. Garrett said it came down to a simple case of math.
The club decided early Tuesday morning to place Romo on injured reserve and move unproven receiver Teddy Williams from the practice squad to the active roster.
"We just felt when we factored all of those things together, it just made sense to make this move," Garrett said.
But why wait this long?
"He's the starting quarterback of our team," Garrett said. "Just to give him every chance to come back and play.
"It's important for him to try to get himself healthy as quickly as he can. To have your mind set on, 'Hey, I'm coming back,' I think that contributes to that."
Romo is the starter going forward. Kitna has no designs on the job. Not only does the 38-year old veteran accept his role, he consciously makes sure not to undercut Romo's authority in how he interacts with his teammates. He does not demand things be done his way.
"I don't want to overstep my bounds," Kitna said. "I'm the backup quarterback. You have to always keep that in mind and understand that at some point, Tony is coming back.
"You can't have taken things so far one way that now he has to do things and he has to change it back to the way he would like. I continue to go down the same train tracks he did."
There is no potential quarterback controversy here. The issue is one of public perception.
Romo has long been a lightening rod. Kitna, in the words of Garrett, "is a natural leader."
The better Kitna plays, the more Garrett and the players rave about his leadership ability, the more critics pick at what they perceive to be one of Romo's shortcomings.
Ask who has played better this season and the majority will say Kitna without hesitation. His record as a starter is 4-4. Romo finished 1-5.
Yet Romo has a higher completion percentage, a higher percentage of touchdown passes and a superior quarterback rating. Romo also has a slightly lower interception percentage and has been sacked fewer times in relation to pass attempts than Kitna.
"He did a lot of good things for our football team," Garrett said of Romo.
Romo will work through these issues. He will continue to travel with the Cowboys and wear headsets on the sidelines. There will be no split within the team.
But he will endure an off-season of critics wondering how good he could be if he just had a little bit more Kitna in him. What's worse, his chance to answer those critics and re-assert his control will probably be delayed by an off-season of labor unrest.
"We certainly felt it was worthwhile [to wait] with Tony," Garrett said.
The wait now extends into next season.
That's not in the best interest of Tony Romo or the Cowboys.
dmoore@dallasnews.com
IRVING – When the Cowboys bowed to the inevitable and placed Tony Romo on injured reserve Tuesday, few outside of the building asked why.
The question was why did it take so long?
The club's insistence on tabling this decision until the final 13 days of the regular season baffles most. An early exit from playoff contention and Jon Kitna's superlative performance seemed to make this a foregone conclusion.
The suggestion by interim coach Jason Garrett that a return was dangled like a psychological carrot to aid in Romo's rehabilitation is a partial explanation at best.
Jerry Jones clung to the hope that Romo would have a role in this second-half renaissance. He did not want his starting quarterback to be associated with a dreadful first half and have no hand in the team's improved play at the end.
That doesn't play well in the court of public opinion with a potential lockout on the horizon.
"The thing I stated to him was I hope to play well enough to get us back into some sort of playoff race so he could come back and play," Kitna said upon learning the job is his for the remainder of the season. "That was my intention all along.
"Obviously, that didn't happen."
Romo fractured his left clavicle when New York Giants linebacker Michael Boley drove him into the turf on Oct. 25. Surgery was ruled out because the location of the break did not lend itself to the insertion of a plate.
The best case scenario was that Romo would return for the final two games of the regular season. Jones said 12 days ago he felt that timetable was still realistic.
But the area around the break remains sensitive. Romo still has not been cleared to practice. Garrett said it came down to a simple case of math.
The club decided early Tuesday morning to place Romo on injured reserve and move unproven receiver Teddy Williams from the practice squad to the active roster.
"We just felt when we factored all of those things together, it just made sense to make this move," Garrett said.
But why wait this long?
"He's the starting quarterback of our team," Garrett said. "Just to give him every chance to come back and play.
"It's important for him to try to get himself healthy as quickly as he can. To have your mind set on, 'Hey, I'm coming back,' I think that contributes to that."
Romo is the starter going forward. Kitna has no designs on the job. Not only does the 38-year old veteran accept his role, he consciously makes sure not to undercut Romo's authority in how he interacts with his teammates. He does not demand things be done his way.
"I don't want to overstep my bounds," Kitna said. "I'm the backup quarterback. You have to always keep that in mind and understand that at some point, Tony is coming back.
"You can't have taken things so far one way that now he has to do things and he has to change it back to the way he would like. I continue to go down the same train tracks he did."
There is no potential quarterback controversy here. The issue is one of public perception.
Romo has long been a lightening rod. Kitna, in the words of Garrett, "is a natural leader."
The better Kitna plays, the more Garrett and the players rave about his leadership ability, the more critics pick at what they perceive to be one of Romo's shortcomings.
Ask who has played better this season and the majority will say Kitna without hesitation. His record as a starter is 4-4. Romo finished 1-5.
Yet Romo has a higher completion percentage, a higher percentage of touchdown passes and a superior quarterback rating. Romo also has a slightly lower interception percentage and has been sacked fewer times in relation to pass attempts than Kitna.
"He did a lot of good things for our football team," Garrett said of Romo.
Romo will work through these issues. He will continue to travel with the Cowboys and wear headsets on the sidelines. There will be no split within the team.
But he will endure an off-season of critics wondering how good he could be if he just had a little bit more Kitna in him. What's worse, his chance to answer those critics and re-assert his control will probably be delayed by an off-season of labor unrest.
"We certainly felt it was worthwhile [to wait] with Tony," Garrett said.
The wait now extends into next season.
That's not in the best interest of Tony Romo or the Cowboys.