IRVING, Texas – Not many figures in the NFL landscape are more familiar with the importance of "winning the big one" than Redskins coach Mike Shanahan.
As offensive coordinator, and eventually head coach of the Denver Broncos, few people were closer to Hall of Fame quarterback John Elway during his struggles and eventual success in winning a championship.
It makes sense then that Shanahan would field questions this week about the comparison of Elway, now the executive vice president of football operations for Denver, to Tony Romo. In the moments following Dallas' 51-48 loss to the Broncos on Sunday, Cowboys owner/general manager Jerry Jones compared Romo's hardships in delivering big victories to Elway's career.
Said Jones: "The guy standing over on the other sideline or up in the box, John Elway, had those things said about him his entire career. He was a great player and we all know that, and he ultimately got his Super Bowls and they don't say that about him anymore."
Shanahan said Wednesday the comparison was a fair one.
"I don't think there's any question about it. That's everybody's goal, to win the Super Bowl, and unless you do it, you're always going to have people second-guessing yourself," he said. "John had that as well, and when he did win the two his last couple years, back-to-back, that quickly goes away. But until you do it, you're always going to have that tag."
Elway was the poster child for big game disappointment for much of his legendary career. Prior to winning two Super Bowls in his final two seasons, he managed a so-so 7-8 postseason record for the Broncos.
Most notable among those eight losses were a trio of lopsided Super Bowl defeats. Elway led Denver to the Super Bowl after the 1986, 1987 and 1989 seasons, where the Broncos were defeated by a combined score of 136-40. [embedded_ad]
Shanahan was Elway's offensive coordinator for the first two Super Bowl losses, and he was the Broncos' head coach for the two wins, after the 1997 and 1998 seasons.
"I think the people that see Tony practice every day and the teammates know what he can do. But you do it as a team. Everybody's got to do it together," Shanahan said. "When I was with John, going into the 15th, 16th year, you had the same people saying that he couldn't do it throughout his whole career. Then when he does do it, everybody says 'Ah, yeah. We knew he could do it.' I mean, it's the same old thing."
Of course, Romo still has a bit of catching up to do. The Cowboys' quarterback has appeared in just four playoff games with one victory, and consequently has not reached the Super Bowl. That said, Shanahan said the process remains the same.
"You've just got to fight through it, you can't listen to the critics and you've got to believe in yourself, and I'm sure that's what Tony's doing," he said.
