ARLINGTON, Texas – The Cowboys' officially start their offseason program on Monday, but Tony Romo has been back at work a bit longer than that.
"It's been going great here for the last two, three weeks – just getting them going and being able to go full speed and all that stuff. It's been great," he said.
Romo spoke Saturday at an event hosted by All Pro Dad at AT&T Stadium. It was the first time he's spoken publicly since he underwent surgery on his left clavicle, which he fractured twice during the course of the 2015 season. Back on March 8 he had a Mumford procedure, in which a portion of the clavicle is shaved down to alleviate stress on the bone.
Recovery time for the surgery was slated at six-to-eight weeks, and Romo said he's able to throw fully and participate in offseason workouts.
"I can throw fully," he said. "I've been throwing fully here for a good week and a half, two weeks. It's been good."
The Cowboys can officially start their offseason program on April 18. As dictated by the NFL's Collective Bargaining Agreement, the offseason program starts with two weeks of strength and conditioning. The second phase of the program includes on-field workouts, drills and instruction – though no live contact or team offense vs. team defense drills are allowed.
Given that he can throw, though, Romo said he has had an opportunity to throw with his receiver – including Dez Bryant.
"We've gotten out there," he said. "It's part of the offseason and you're always getting better."
As is typically the case, Romo said the Cowboys have had strong participation throughout the offseason, despite the fact that the program doesn't officially start until this week. Cowboys coach Jason Garrett has often pointed out that many Cowboys players live in the Dallas area during the offseason, which usually leads to strong offseason participation – something Romo said has continued in 2016.[embeddedad0]
"We've had a great turnout," Romo said. "A lot of guys are wanting to get in and get after it, and I think that's a great sign. I'm all for seeing all the guys in there every day."
