Tony Romo, Where Art Thou?
It’s official: Tony Romo will no longer be a Cowboy. It was expected that the Cowboys were going to release their all-time leader in passing yards and touchdowns today (Thursday). But news broke this morning that Dallas is now looking to trade the 36 year-old veteran. Details have yet to come out as to who the lucky team will be. Many, however, believe Denver and Houston to be the front runners in the Romo race.
Chris Mortensen reported today: “Cowboys now expect to trade Tony Romo to Broncos or Texans, sources say. Broncos talking with Jets about Trevor Siemian.” Later in the day, he tweeted, “Now getting some backpedal on Siemian/Jets/Broncos talk. But Romo as a trade rather than release is still alive.”
BUT! The rumor mill continues to spin. As of this past hour, NFL Network Reporter James Palmer sent a succession of tweets out saying, “From my understanding the Broncos are not interested in trading for Tony Romo.” Minutes later he said, “I’ve also been told that the Broncos are not currently shopping Trevor Siemian.” So at this point, lacking serious sources, we’re resorting to pure speculation as to where Romo will end up.
Romo, who turns 37 this April, began his career as an undrafted free agent in 2003 when he accepted an opportunity to play for the Cowboys in lieu of an offer from Denver. However, he didn’t get his start until October of 2006. That year he helped propel the Cowboys to a 9-7 finish and a playoff berth.
The following year, he set franchise records with 4,211 yards passing and 36 touchdowns. Dallas went 13-3, but lost in the divisional round. Since then, he’s carved out a solid career under center for the Cowboys, throwing for a total of 34,183 yards, 248 touchdowns, and a QB rating of 97.1.
More recently, in the past three years, he’s struggled almost constantly with various injuries, most notably a back injury that’s troubled him since 2014. After suffering a broken collarbone in the 2016 preseason, he was sidelined long enough for rookie Dak Prescott to take the reins and ultimately Romo’s job.
If the Cowboys had decided to retain Romo in the coming year, they’d be forced to pay him $14 million–which is rather unreasonable for a 37 year-old veteran QB with a laundry list of major injuries in recent years. Wherever he lands, he should expect to make similar money, except in the starting role.
Make sure to stay tuned in to ESPN as it looks like the Romo trade could go through any minute now. Or, if James Palmer is right, perhaps he’ll end up a free agent after all. In a league whose landscape changes faster than the seasons, anything could happen at this point.
