Tony Romo, Dallas Cowboys’ Time to Shine Has Arrived

After months of December collapses, Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo is entering the playoffs on a hot streak, as are the Cowboys themselves.

It’s been quite a while since the Dallas Cowboys have been in the playoffs.  It feels like even longer since Tony Romo was the headliner for this Cowboys franchise, at least, in the positive light.

But that’s where Romo and Dallas find themselves entering Sunday’s Wild Card game against the Detroit Lions (Jan. 4, 4:40PM ET, FOX).

Romo’s December 2014 was the complete opposite of what everyone, including himself were used to. He completed 74.8 percent of his passes with 12 touchdowns and one interception, recording a 133.7 passer rating, the highest passer rating for December in league history, leading the Dallas Cowboys to a 4-0 record.  Obviously, Romo was named NFC offensive player of the month.

But that was then and this is now and if the Cowboys are going to make their originally unprecedented Super Bowl run, Romo has to keep the hot streak burning strong.

“I’ve said that it’s all about winning,” Romo said on Thursday.  “You’re judged as a quarterback and coaches on that.  That’s what the game is all about.  I think it’s a great thing.  That’s why you have to play great when it counts.”

Romo’s second chance at solidifying himself as one of the elite NFL quarterbacks comes in his first playoff appearance since 2009, when Dallas beat the Eagles in the Wild Card, only to lose to Brett Favre and the Minnesota Vikings in the divisional round.

Since then, the Cowboys finished 6-10 after a broken collarbone cut Romo’s season short, then went through three straight 8-8 seasons which in two of those seasons Romo “being Romo” kept Dallas out of the playoffs.

The Cowboys all-time passing leader threw for 3,705 yards (his fourth straight season throwing for over 3,500 yards) with 34 touchdowns, two off of his career-high 36, and nine interceptions, his first time throwing less than 10 picks since 2010.

“Romo will probably be a Hall of Fame quarterback,” Lions defensive end Darryl Tapp said about Romo.  “The guy makes plays when they need him.  Dez (Bryant) is playing out of his mind this year.  He’s always been that superstar in the making.  But it seems like this year it’s clicked and he’s really been a threat for those guys.”

That’s where Romo has benefitted: his supporting cast.

The Landry Hat

Under new offensive coordinator Scott Linehan, the Cowboys have scored at least 38 points in each game in December and proves to be one of the biggest threats against the Lions second-ranked defense.  Ironic that Linehan’s first playoff matchup as the Cowboys OC comes against his former team in Detroit after the Lions felt as if he couldn’t do the job.

“Scott’s been amazing,” Romo mentioned.  “His ability about the game, we’re very similar in a lot of respects just the way we think about it and attack it.   I’ve been very lucky to have him this year, and he’s really done an outstanding job of putting us in a position to have success.”

Guess you can call it one man’s (or in this case team’s) trash is another’s treasure.

While Romo prospered under Linehan, running back DeMarco Murray ran for a career-high 1,845 yards with a career-high 13 touchdowns and wide receiver Dez Bryant exploded for 1,320 yards receiving, just 62 yards short of his career-high 1,382, with a career-best 16 touchdowns.

Dallas has the NFL’s fifth best scoring offense, entering Sunday’s matchup averaging 29.2 points per game.

While it’s a bit too early to call this Cowboys trio of Romo, Murray and Bryant as good or better than that of Troy Aikman, Emmitt Smith and Michael Irvin (all Hall of Famers by the way), this postseason will be the one that could solidify their place in Cowboys history as one of the best offenses the team has seen since the 90’s, especially if they can win it all.

But let’s get past the Detroit matchup first.

Next: Where do the Cowboys rank among all NFL franchises all-time?