PHILADELPHIA – If you had an opinion on the Tony Romo situation, you can go to work Monday smiling.
In some form or fashion, you were probably right about your argument.
And that's why this has always been a tricky situation from the start, and it didn't really get cleared up much after we saw Romo's short-lived debut during this 2016 season, which is now into 2017.
Personally, I thought all along that the Cowboys should've played Romo, even before word broke on Friday that he would get a few snaps. And yeah, I wanted to see a little more than one drive, but either way, it was good to see him out there. And it was good to see him drive the offense down for a touchdown.
But when I think about it … was I really right?
See, I've said all along that Romo needed to play to knock off the natural rust that comes with sitting out for a full 13 months. If he has to play in the playoffs, at least you gave him a few reps in a real game.
But did he? Did he really need that series to be ready for a playoff game? You could argue that he didn't, considering how he marched the ball down, completing 3-of-4 passes, including a nifty touchdown pass to Terrance Williams. And, let's not forget he did that with Emmett Cleary and Joe Looney starting on the left side of the line. Romo looked surprisingly comfortable in the pocket that was missing their two biggest linemen in Tyron Smith and Ron Leary.
Maybe he didn't need to play at all.
But then, if you were like me and thought he needed some reps to get himself ready for the playoffs, you could argue that his one drive could be a positive boost for the Cowboys heading into this postseason.
If there was any doubt what you might have from Romo, he probably showed you what you needed to see in just one drive. Yes, the competition will be tougher and the defenses will be more aggressive. But the weapons around him will be much better as well, seeing that the O-line should be in intact and that really good rookie running back, who I think is the NFL's MVP, will be in the backfield as well.
[embeddedad0]Romo hasn't even lacked confidence, but there's no way what we saw Sunday will discourage him moving forward. Plus, if the Cowboys have to turn to Romo, his surrounding offensive players will have more confidence in the "backup" than any other No. 2 quarterback in the NFL.
However, there is one element to this that might not be such a good thing.
Who knows what will happen in the playoffs, which is a different animal altogether. Any of the six teams in the field can beat the others – on any field or any day.
But let's just say Dak doesn't have his best game in the playoffs. Let's say he's off on some early throws and the Cowboys find themselves down.
Did Sunday's one drive by Romo shorten Dak's leash any more? We all know the playoffs is a win-or-go-home situation, so there is no time to mess around.
Again, that scenario isn't Matt Ryan or Aaron Rodgers having a rough half with an inexperienced backup behind them.
This would be the reverse to that. Again, I don't want to see Prescott struggle at all, but if it happens, the Cowboys will have a harder decision to make than any other team if that situation occurs in the playoffs.
And it probably got even tougher thanks to one offensive drive here Sunday.
