This is the last Friday that we will have to endure without the NFL in our lives for the rest of 2015. Let that sink in.
The footballiest time of the year is on the horizon and it’s a great time to be alive. The Dallas Cowboys kick off their season next Sunday at home against the New York Giants. How many days away is that exactly? Tony! Tell us!
9
— Tony Romo (@tonyromo) May 15, 2015
Thanks, Romo. I can’t wait to try a crownie or two, or seventeen, in 9 days.
That’s right, baby. 9 days. SINGLE DIGITS.
Our Countdown To Kickoff series here at Inside The Star has reviewed the Greatest Cowboys to wear each jersey number. We started 90 days ago with #99 so if you have some time on your hands (like 18 hours) go back and read them all! I’ll share my crownies with you.
I hope you practiced your spin move. We’re about to get going with the Greatest 9 in Dallas Cowboys History. Let’s roll.
The Following Players Have All Worn 9 For The Dallas Cowboys:
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*Active player on the Dallas Cowboys roster
Herm Edwards once said, “You play to win the game!” That’s why we’re all here, right? That’s why we lift all them weights. We spend each and every season believing that this is the year. This is our time.
The Greatest #9 in Dallas Cowboys History has played each and every snap of his career with a sense of greatness that exemplifies that exact hunger and drive. He has played not just as if this is the year, but also as if this snap, as if this throw, as if this is the moment.
He has given us his absolute all.
The next time that you see the Dallas Cowboys on a football field it will be for real. Games will count, statistics will be recorded, and the journey will officially begin towards Super Bowl 50 in Santa Clara, California.
When the game is over and confetti rains down in Santa Clara, Jim Nantz is going to hand over the Vince Lombardi Trophy… to the Greatest 9 in Dallas Cowboys History.
Tony Romo
Do you remember what you were doing on October 23rd, 2006? Let me remind you.
“Romo! Romo! Romo!”
The chants were deafening within Texas Stadium as the Dallas Cowboys trotted to the locker room at halftime on Monday night against the New York Giants. This was Monday Night Football. The New York Giants were in OUR house. The house of the Dallas Cowboys. Where we demand excellence.
The lives of each and every Dallas Cowboys fan were made better at halftime when then Head Coach Bill Parcells (now Pro Football Hall of Famer, mind you) decided to pull quarterback Drew Bledsoe in favor of Antonio Ramiro Romo.
Signed as an undrafted rookie free agent in 2003, Tony Romo was relatively unknown. After failing to get drafted, two other Eastern Illinois alumni showed some interest in Romo: Mike Shanahan, then Head Coach of the Denver Broncos, and Sean Payton, then Assistant Head Coach/Quarterbacks Coach for the Dallas Cowboys. Romo felt that he had the best shot to make the Cowboys roster so he packed his bags and set sail for Dallas.
Tony entered that 2006 Monday Night Game against the Giants the same way that he runs out on the field today, with sheer joy and love for the game. That’s what has made Romo special all of these years, he plays the game the way that we all wish that we could, and with an attitude that we all wish that we had.
Teach Me How To Romo
The early days of Tony Romo were some of the most incredible games to watch for Dallas Cowboys fans. In his first career start at Texas Stadium he showed us the way that he can lead a team as the Cowboys gave the 9-0 Colts – and eventual Super Bowl XLI Champions, by the way – their first loss of the season.
Oh and a week later he threw for 5 touchdowns on Thanksgiving – no big deal.
Thrilling victories have become a staple of the Cowboy QB. Just a week after tossing those 5 touchdowns Romo went up to the Meadowlands and won a thriller against the G-Men. He has become synonymous with epic games.
In 2007, the Cowboys traveled to Buffalo for another Monday Night contest. Despite throwing 5 interceptions, Romo rallied the team and was able to put up 9 points in the final 24 seconds to squeak out a 25-24 victory. With Tony Romo as your starting quarterback, things are always interesting.
Romo Magic
2007, St. Louis Rams, you know what play I’m talking about.
Tony Romo has demonstrated this uncanny ability to make plays when things seem like they’re about to come crashing down. It’s not a skill that can be taught, it’s just being special… and that’s what Romo is.
Consider that Tony Romo went from undrafted rookie to star quarterback for the Dallas Cowboys. How freaking incredible is that? It’s literally the American Dream.
There is a magic about Romo, there’s no doubt about that. It’s a combination of a lot of things, really.
There’s grit – and Tony Romo is a warrior. The guy suffered broken ribs AND a punctured lung and still came back to rally his team to victory over the San Francisco 49ers in 2011.
How about that time he actually broke his back against the Washington Redskins in 2013 and, with the season on the line, still threw the game-winning touchdown to DeMarco Murray? His will to win is unmatched.
If you’re going to go to battle, Tony Romo can lead you there.
Over the course of the last few seasons in Dallas he has really embodied the “C” that he wears on his chest. Dez Bryant, one of the most passionate players throughout the entire NFL, lays out for Romo. He’s the type of quarterback that players want to fight for. He brings out the best in his teammates and raises the overall caliber of play.
As obvious as it is, there is a magic to Romo’s magic. You simply cannot explain some of the plays he makes or how he makes them. Need some proof?
This exhibit is a vintage JJ Watt from 2014, only last year’s Defensive Player of the Year. While he wasn’t at the jugs machine catching passes for no reason at all he completely whiffs here when Tony puts on the classic Romo Spin Move.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xFiEIAXzfNc
Not enough for you?
How about when he put the same move on Bruce Irvin one week later?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vd1tApAxqQE
This pass came on a pivotal 3rd and 20 which kept the drive alive, allowing the Cowboys to put the exclamation point on their signature win of the 2014 regular season.
MVP
So much is made about comparing quarterbacks to one another.
Super Bowl Rings, MVP trophies, and passing yard titles are always the determining factors, but I think we should consider something else.
Tony Romo has developed into one of the most dependable quarterbacks in the National Football League. With him under center, you always have a shot. Always.
Excluding 2010 (Romo only started the first 6 games before suffering a season-ending injury), with Tony Romo under center the Dallas Cowboys have never – not one single time – played a game where they were mathematically eliminated from playoff contention.
That’s right, every single game that Tony Romo has ever played for the Dallas Cowboys has mattered. Among all other notable NFL quarterbacks, the same can only be said of Tom Brady and Joe Flacco.
Think about that. You have not once gone Christmas shopping with the Cowboys out of it. That is an incredible gift that Tony Romo has given us over the course of his career. He can never be counted out.
#9: Tony Romo
This era of Dallas Cowboys football will hold a special place in all of our hearts when it is over. Tony Romo has been the epitome of stability for the Dallas Cowboys since he stepped into our lives on the evening of October 23rd, 2006.
Among many, many others… Tony Romo’s Cowboy resume includes:
- 2,743 Completions (2nd in Dallas Cowboys History)
- 33,270 Passing Yards (1st in Dallas Cowboys History)
- 242 Passing Touchdowns (1st in Dallas Cowboys History)
- 257.9 Yards Per Game (1st in Dallas Cowboys History)
- 97.6 Career Passer Rating (2nd in NFL History)
October 23rd falls on a Friday this year, but guess who the Dallas Cowboys play two days later on Sunday? The New York Giants. It will mark the 9-year anniversary of when #9 marched his way into our lives.
When teams win championships there is always a certain magic that surrounds them, things that happen for no reason other than destiny. The Greatest 9 in Dallas Cowboys History, Tony Romo is that magic. This season feels like destiny.
Check back tomorrow to read about the Greatest #8 in Dallas Cowboys History!
Want to share your opinions on who should be featured on our Countdown To Kickoff? Email me at rjochoa@insidethestar.com or Tweet @rjochoa.
