It appears that the Dallas Cowboys now have a full-fledged quarterback controversy on their hands. Today, at his noon press conference, head coach Bill Parcells announced that Tony Romo would be the Cowboys' starting quarterback Sunday against Carolina. Parcells had benched Bledsoe in favor of Romo during the Cowboys' loss at home to the Giants in Monday night's game. Prior to Monday night's game Romo had only thrown two passes in an NFL regular season game.
So, the question is, has Parcells made the right decision? Is Romo the guy to be the Cowboys quarterback? The answer: WHO CARES! It's not that I don't care about the Cowboys. I do. I am not a diehard Cowboys fan, but as a resident of North Texas, I watch the games with interest and would be happy for the Cowboys to put in another Super Bowl appearance.
It's just that I don't give a rat's rear about this quarterback controversy. I have never understood all the hubub over the Cowboys this season. At the beginning of the season, so many of the football minds had the Cowboys as their pick for the Superbowl. I just couldn't see the Cowboys as anything more than a .500 or a little better team at best.
I never thought Drew Bledsoe would be able to lead the Cowboys to a Superbowl, much less win one. Drew Bledsoe is not a Superbowl caliber quarterback. He has demonstrated that for fourteen seasons in the NFL. But does anyone honestly believe that Tony Romo, an undrafted quarterback from Eastern Illionois who nobody has ever heard of, is a Superbowl caliber quarterback? Maybe Romo is somewhat better than Bledsoe. I doubt it, but I honestly don't know. But better than Bledsoe still doesn't win a Superbowl.
And isn't that really the point? You see, I think this whole quarterback controversy is an exercise in missing the point. Cowboys' fans, we don't need to be screaming for Romo or Bledsoe. We need to be screaming for a quarterback. A real quarterback. Somebody with a reputation and a decent pedigree from college, somebody with some real potential to develop into a great NFL quarterback. Jerry, go buy, beg, steal, borrow, trade for one, whatever you have to do. And while you're at it, get him a decent offensive line to block for him.
My point is, has it been so long since the great Troy that we have forgotten what a real quarterback ought to look like? Don't give me this Tony Romo crap.
And while I'm at it, the Bill Parcells experiment has failed. Parcells came here wanting a Superbowl within the next couple of years to prove his expertise as a coach. The problem, the Cowboys weren't a Superbowl team waiting for a coach. The Cowboys needed some major pieces in place to get them to where they needed to be. There is no doubt that the Cowboys are a better team now than they were before Parcells got here. But they are still a lot of pieces away from being a Superbowl team, the quarterback position being a key piece. And isn't another title what we are really all looking for?
So who cares whether it's Bledsoe or Romo? The Cowboys' season is over. It's time to start building a Cowboys team that we can really take pride in again.
